One of many largest contributors to the declining well being of the planet is how the meals we eat is grown, processed, transported and consumed. With a 3rd of all human-caused greenhouse gasoline emissions being a results of meals, every step of the meals lifecycle contributes to local weather change ultimately. With this in thoughts, it’s our accountability to start out making the change to a extra sustainable life-style in terms of how we store and devour meals.
Whether or not you’re seeking to construct extra small, sustainable habits into your every day routine or fully overhaul the way you select to devour, at Planet Natural, we’re right here that can assist you make extra aware decisions in your change to procuring and consuming extra sustainably.
How do you store sustainably for meals?
Research have proven that the most important chunk of food-related greenhouse gasoline emissions comes from agriculture and land use, making it clear that we can’t assist the planet with out trying to rework our meals system. By making small adjustments to our eating regimen and the way we store for meals, we will help enhance the well being of not solely the planet however our our bodies too.
Whether or not you select to make small swaps to your on a regular basis eating regimen by switching to plant-based milk alternate options, participating in #MeatlessMondays, or shopping for extra natural produce – there are a lot of methods you’ll be able to contribute to creating constructive adjustments to procuring sustainably which now we have detailed under.
Cut back plastic waste
In contrast to different supplies, plastic doesn’t biodegrade and might take as much as 1,000 years to interrupt down. It is among the key contributors to environmental points, with 46% of plastic waste sitting in landfills. Most meals you discover in conventional grocery shops is packaged in plastic and transported in plastic luggage that are then discarded and left to construct up in landfills. Among the best methods to scale back plastic waste when procuring is to:
- Use your personal reusable luggage
- Purchase recent produce that’s free and never wrapped in plastic
- Select meals gadgets that come in additional sustainable packaging
- Recycle meals packaging the place doable.
Store regionally and seasonally
Shopping for meals that isn’t solely in season but additionally produced regionally is one other easy approach to devour extra sustainably. Seasonal consumption not solely helps assist native farmers’ companies however these meals are additionally extra nutrient-dense and should even style higher. Purchasing seasonally additionally helps to encourage extra sustainable agricultural practices because the atmosphere is of course in the best circumstances to develop sure meals organically.
Along with native farm outlets, if in case you have any zero-waste or natural shops in your space, we’d encourage you to buy there for as a lot of your meals as doable earlier than conventional grocery shops. Now we have a number of outlets throughout London, go to Our Shops web page to search out your nearest Planet Natural retailer.
Learn meals labels
One other approach to store extra sustainably is to concentrate to meals labels. Numerous meals that’s marketed as ‘eco-friendly’ can usually nonetheless be produced utilizing practices which can be dangerous to the atmosphere, as this time period doesn’t have a regular definition and will be simply utilized by corporations to mislead customers. Due to this fact it can be crucial that you just perceive what to look out for within the following signifiers that make sure the meals you might be consuming is sustainable:
When procuring extra sustainably, look out for a number of of those labels that signify the meals you might be shopping for works in the direction of bettering the atmosphere.
Check out extra plant-based meals
Probably the most efficient methods to guide a extra sustainable life-style in terms of meals consumption is to make the change to a extra plant-based eating regimen. This doesn’t essentially imply that everybody ought to flip Vegan, nevertheless, making small adjustments to your eating regimen by together with extra plant-based meals can work in the direction of making constructive adjustments for the planet. Research have proven that plant-based diets can minimize greenhouse gasoline emissions by nearly half as they use 30% much less vitality for manufacturing, and have a 41.5% decrease carbon footprint in comparison with meat-based diets.
By taking small steps to minimise meat consumption and improve the variety of vegetation in your eating regimen, you are utilizing your buy energy to sign to the meals business that customers need extra sustainable meals choices. Keep in mind that plant-based doesn’t should imply consuming solely fruit and veggies, there are a lot of meat and dairy alternate options and plant-based variations of your favorite meals that you could make the change to. Flick through our vegan store to search out an array of plant-based alternate options to your on a regular basis meals staples.
How can I eat extra sustainably?
Research have proven that UK households and companies throw away round 9.5 million tonnes of meals waste in a single 12 months, with most of this meals waste ending up in overcrowded landfills. This build-up of meals waste then releases methane gasoline because it degrades, which then contributes to world warming. Due to this fact by making a aware effort to scale back your meals waste, you’ll be able to assist scale back this environmental influence. Among the best methods to scale back meals waste are:
Solely store for what you want
Whether or not you make every day journeys to your native grocery retailer or pre-plan meals prematurely, ensure you know what to purchase and when to make sure every part you purchase will get used and never wasted. Create a weekly meal plan or write an inventory earlier than procuring that can assist you keep on monitor.
Compost leftover meals
If you end up throwing away meals scraps after making ready meals, we propose including these scraps to a compost bin or heap as an alternative. Whether or not you purchase a composting bin in your backyard or buy a helpful tabletop composter, composting leftovers can assist you to repurpose meals in a extra sustainable approach that may then be used to create nutrient-rich soil for vegetation or vegetable gardens. Head on over to our information on the best way to compost to search out out extra data round this sustainability observe.
Freeze meals in bulk
In case you select to arrange your meals prematurely, batch-cooking giant portions of meals after which freezing them into smaller meals is a good way to get probably the most out of your meals and scale back the potential for leftover waste. In case you do usually end up with plenty of meals leftover from meals, freezing what’s left isn’t solely nice for lowering waste but additionally provides you a handy meal choice at a later date.
Develop your personal produce
Finally, one of many best methods to eat extra sustainably is to develop your personal meals. Whether or not you create small vegetable patches in your backyard at residence or have entry to an allotment, rising your personal fruit and greens lets you management the quantity of meals you want, saves you cash and in addition reduces the influence conventional agricultural practices have on the atmosphere.
Store sustainably with the assistance of Planet Natural
House to quite a lot of manufacturers with a ardour for sustainability, Planet Natural is right here that can assist you in your journey to main a extra sustainable life. Store our full sustainable dwelling vary to find plastic-free meals, sustainable family merchandise and extra, to start out constructing sustainable habits into your on a regular basis routines.