12 Tips to Help You Reduce Household Waste

1 Bring your reusable bags

Do you often forget to bring your bags to the store with you? Be sure to have lots of bags and keep them in your car, purse, by the front door, clipped to your bicycle basket, or anywhere else you find helpful. The most important thing is putting them back when you’ve unpacked your groceries! Up your reusable bag game by having bags for your produce as well.

2 Buy locally produced items

When something comes from far away, more energy is used to get it to you. It’s simple math. When you go local, not only are you reducing waste, but you are supporting your local economy and often small farms or businesses.

3 Shop the Bulk Department

Buying from Bulk doesn’t mean purchasing huge quantities. In fact, you can buy any amount you need. This means that excess food won’t spoil and go to waste. Also, the bulk department lets you use your reuseable containers, meaning you use less plastic, paper, and other wasteful packaging. You’ll also save some money! 

4 Get a reusable bottle & thermos

It’s important to stay hydrated throughout the busy day, but those plastic bottles and coffee cups are so bad for the environment! Get a reusable water bottle and a thermos, or several. Then carry, drink, refill, and repeat. If you’ve forgotten them at home, buy beverages in glass or other recyclable containers.

5 While you’re at it, carry cutlery

Before you leave the house, grab a metal fork and spoon, wrap them in a cloth napkin, and throw them into your bag. You’ll be cutting down on your daily waste by saying goodbye to single-use cutlery and paper napkins.

6 Embrace the reusable

Reusable bags, glass jars and bottles, cloth napkins and rags, metal straws and lunch boxes! If it’s something you can use only once, see if you can find a reusable alternative. 

7 Save your glass containers

Empty jelly jar? Wash it out and use it for spices. Glass bottle with a screw-on cap? Now it’s a vessel for bulk tamari. Before you recycle or, heaven forbid, throw a glass container away, try to think of how you might reuse it. 

8 Don’t despair, repair

So you ripped your shirt. Instead of throwing it in the trash, try stitching it up. Now the leg has fallen off your kitchen chair. Before sending it to the landfill, try some wood glue. If it’s broken, fix it. Can’t fix it? Try recycling.

9 Compost your food waste

We get it; you can’t eat everything. Orange peels taste terrible, and don’t get us started on eggshells. And that last piece of casserole hidden in the back of the fridge is getting fuzzy, so you really shouldn’t eat it. Instead of throwing inedible food in the trash, start a compost pile. It’s easy, and even if you don’t have a lot of room, you can get compact composters for your yard or kitchen.

10 Learn recycling

The fact is, recycling isn’t always straightforward. You gotta learn the wheres, hows, and whats for your area. Once you know what’s available, make a plan. Print a list of what your recycling center takes and stick it to your fridge. Remember to rinse out containers before throwing them in your recycling bin. This keeps them from getting tossed at the center and also keeps your house from getting stinky.

11 Plan your meals

Making a meal plan will help reduce waste because you’ll do less blind shopping. Ever get home from the store only to realize you already have onions? You either have to make a French onion soup or watch the excess spoil while you encourage your family members to skip the apple and give the onion a try. If you plan out the week’s meals, you will know exactly what you need. Plus, if you plan your trip to the grocery store, you’re less likely to forget your bags!

12 Shop for items that use less plastic

When you’re shopping, scrutinize the packaging. Is it cardboard? Easily recyclable. Plastic? Not so much. Choose items that are already in better packaging whenever possible. And remember, check the Bulk Department, because if it’s available there, you can use your reusable container!