What an amazing place this is that we get to call home!
It is so easy to get caught up in the hustle of life and forget about the responsibility we have to take care of this beautiful planet of ours. When we do think about it, the task of it all can seem rather daunting! Helping the earth does not have to be an overhaul of your entire diet or mealtime routine! By incorporating small acts into your day to help this earth of ours, together we can make a big difference!
Below are some easy and relatively low cost things you can do at meal times to show some love towards the earth. Do whatever you can and remember that anything is better than nothing, no matter how small! No one can do it all on their own, but nothing is accomplished if no one ever tries.
Don't litter.
Bring your food wrappers to a garbage can. Please, I beg you. This one is not too difficult.
Recycle your drink containers.
Collect your bottles and cans then bring them to the eco-station! This not only helps the environment but can also make you a few extra bucks in return!
Buy a reusable water bottle.
Plastic water bottles are not only harmful to the environment but they are so expensive! $4.00 for water? I am not about that. Save your money and the earth and buy yourself a reusable water bottle. I have one with an attached straw and it somehow makes drinking water 100 times more enjoyable.
Pack your food in a reusable lunch container.
There are so many cute reusable containers on the market now! Don't stress about getting a fancy glass or silicone lunch container if it’s not in your price range, any basic container will work just the same. You can even reuse old food jars or big yogurt containers! In the end, less single-use plastics going to the landfill is a win for everyone.
Eat leftovers!
Estimates show that Canadians produced 35.5 million tonnes of food waste in 2019. 11 million tonnes could have been saved! We can do our part to help avoid this by finding ways to use the food we buy rather than throwing it in the trash. Save that extra lasagna from dinner and pack it in your lunch for the next day. Make sure to eat older leftovers in your fridge first. Don’t like eating the same food two days in a row? Make dishes such as rice that can be used in different meals throughout the week. You can also make dishes that are easy to freeze, such as chilli, and save any leftovers in the freezer in single sized portions to eat the next week instead of the next day.
Recycle your cardboard food boxes.
Cereal boxes, pizza boxes, pasta boxes, cardboard egg cartons, you name it! Many apartment buildings have paper recycling bins and communities may have weekly curb-side recycling pickup. If you don’t have access to either of these there may be a recycle station nearby that you can drop off at once every few weeks! This is one simple way to make sure all of that food packaging is not going straight to the landfill.
Compost.
This may not be a practical step to take when you are living in a dorm room but if you have a backyard, this is a great one to try out! Many public spaces are even starting to place compost bins beside their trash cans. These compost bins are the perfect place to put any food scraps, paper towels or napkins. Compostable take-out containers are even starting to become more popular! If you have a compost bin available, this is a simple step to take to put any food waste back into mother nature’s cycle and in the end help to nourish the earth.
Buy in bulk!
Less packaging = happy planet. Buying in bulk not only saves on packaging but it is also less expensive! I love loading up on staple pantry items such as elbow noodles, almonds, flour, oats, and chocolate covered raisins (haha) in the bulk aisle at the grocery store!
Adopt more plant-based products into your diet .
The Eat-Lancet Commission is a scientific review on sustainable food systems that recommends a 50% reduction in the consumption of red meat and an increase in consumption of plant based products in order to help meet UN Sustainable Development Goals. The purpose of this recommendation is to help offset the vast amount of resources required to meet our world’s current demand for meat.
For many folks, adopting a plant based diet may not be practical or desirable, and that is okay! You may live in a neighbourhood with limited access to a grocery store with plant based proteins. You may be a broke student living off of hamburger helper and chicken ramen packets right now. You might just love meat. You do not need to go raw vegan to help out the earth. Adopting even one meatless dinner a week can help to move us towards a more sustainable food system! While this is a great step to take if you are financially and physically able to do so, there are lots of other ways to show mother nature some love if that's not a place you are currently at!
We do not have to overhaul our entire diet or mealtime routine to help out the earth. I hope that these simple and practical tips can inspire you to adopt more eco-friendly practices into your day. Show me what you are doing to help the earth by tagging me on Instagram or twitter @honeytoastblog .
- Jess
RESOURCES
1. https://wrwcanada.com/en/get-involved/resources/food-waste-themed-resources/food-waste-canada-facts
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