10 Sustainable Tips for Grocery Shopping Trips

Ever taken a second to stop and look around at the grocery store to consider how much of our food is packaged in plastic? Roughly 40% of all plastic is used for packaging...used only once and then discarded. FORTY PERCENT! Imagine that in terms of losing 40% of your body weight, or getting a 40% salary raise. That's a pretty big chunk.

Plastic is ubiquitous in most grocery stores...so common it's almost invisible.

1. Make a list. This is the best way to avoid unnecessary purchases that could lead to food waste later on. Only plan for what you know you or your household can eat in a reasonable amount of time. We've found that going to the store more frequently for a few specific items each time (ex: getting only what we need for dinner that night) has reduced our amount of waste quite a bit! If you don't have the time to go multiple times a week, planning is a must for both plastic and food waste reduction.

2. Consider leaving things off your list. Easy & fun DIY items like hummus, salsa/guacamole, nut butters and pre-made salads are good places to start.

3. Bring reusable shopping bags. They're super affordable and will last you many trips to the store. Some grocery stores will even reimburse you for bringing your own shopping bags, so make sure you ask! These can be used anywhere that you shop...Target, clothing stores, etc. We keep ours hanging on our coat rack by the front door so we don't forget them. You can also keep a few in your car for unplanned stops at the store.

4. Use mesh or cloth produce bags instead of the plastic ones provided in the produce section. These bags are also washable, so you don't have to worry about them getting wet or dirty from your produce. *Side note* a lot of produce that you might be bagging doesn't actually even need a bag. Common produce items that can do without a bag altogether are listed below ↓

• Garlic

• Onions

• Potatoes

• Bananas

• Avocados

• Oranges

• Lemons & limes

• Anything else with an inedible skin or peel...think of it as having its own personal bag :)

• We also don’t bag our tomatoes, peppers, or apples...we just give them a quick wash before using!

5. Do your best to avoid pre-packaged produce. Chances are it's available unpackaged somewhere else in the produce section. Celery, carrots, and leafy green mixes tend to come in plastic shell containers or bags. Because those types of plastic generally aren't recyclable, see if you can find them unpackaged (we found loose spinach in the salad bar) and just use your reusable produce bag instead.

6. Bring glassware for the bulk, hot food bar, and deli sections. This is one of our most favorite sustainable grocery shopping tips right now! Depending on what your grocery store has to offer, you can likely use your own containers for more than you realize...

• Pre-made salads behind the deli bar

• Hot bar foods like stir fry, noodles, etc.

• Uncooked pasta and beans

• Granola

• Trail mix

• Dried fruit

• Cooking essentials like spices, herbs, & flours. This is really helpful for when you only need like 1 tsp of something for a recipe.

• Some grocery stores may even have a filling station for cooking oils, vinegar, & dish soap.

Here's how it works:

- Ask the person behind the deli counter to tare weigh the jar or container for you (tare weight = the weight of an empty container). OR try out these jars made by Package Free that already have the tare weight on them!

- Write down the tare weight on the lid for future use. The cashier will subtract the tare once you get to check out. You'll only have to do this one time for each jar/container.

- Fill the glass jar with your fav bulk section treat! Cloth and mesh produce bags work great for filling in the bulk section as well.

- Be sure to make note of the item number when filling your container, so the cashier knows how to ring it up. We just put the item number in our notes on our phone to avoid using the paper tags each time.

7. Swap out plastic for glass when you can. Peanut butter, mayo/mustard, salsa and other condiments can often be found in glass jars. Ditch the plastic when another option is available!

Peanut Butter: glass jar = $3.79, plastic jar = $3.29

Mayo: glass jar = $3.29, plastic jar = $6.29

8. Buy fresh and freeze. Cut up your fresh fruits and vegetables and separate them out into reusable gallon freezer bags for smoothies, juices, etc. They're dishwasher safe too! You can also replace plastic ziploc snack/sandwich bags with these reusable eco-zip bags.

9. Re-use when you can. We totally get that buying things packaged in plastic is sometimes unavoidable. If you do have to make that purchase, try to get at least one other use out of the container. Wash it out and put your leftovers in it, or take it back to the store with you the next time to fill with something else!

10. Give yourself time to transition into a new style of grocery shopping. Even small changes can make a big difference!

HAPPY SHOPPING!

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*We are not sponsored by any of the brands shown in this post*