Here a few tips and tricks to be more sustainable and environmentally-friendly in your kitchen, from shopping to cooking to waste!
Shopping
- If possible, shop at local grocers or co-ops rather than big chains (and bring your own bag).
- Buy from local farms or join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), as farmers who normally sell a large portion of their produce to restaurants are no longer able to.
- In general, pay attention to where your food is coming from. Food that does not have to be shipped thousands of miles to get to you will taste better, have less preservatives in it, and leads to less emissions.
- Start a garden! Now is a great time to start growing some of your own vegetables, herbs, etc.
- Understand that many “expiration dates” on food are indicators of quality, not safety, and many foods are perfectly edible (and tasty) well past this date.
- Eat less meat, and more vegetables. The meat/dairy industry is one of the top greenhouse gas emitters, and eating more veggies is good for you anyways!
Cooking
- With this extra time, get creative and use all the food that needs to be eaten. You can explore some new tastes, improve your cooking skills, and not let anything go to waste.
- Food can look a little ugly, but that does not mean it is bad! You can still eat things with bruises and bumps, they will taste the same!
- Cook seasonally, embrace the foods and flavors that are in season where you are – they will taste better and will not have to be shipped as far.
- If you do order food, order from a small business, and tell them you do not need napkins or plastic utensils.
Waste
- Save all leftovers, freeze them if necessary, and eat them!
- Find new ways to use the containers food often comes in – store leftovers, create pots for plants, or even make some art projects.
- Begin composting! There is plenty of info online, and Hamilton County is holding free webinars on the process!
- Recycle what you can and pay attention to what can and cannot be recycled in your area. Hint: do not throw everything in there “because better to be safe than sorry.” This can clog up and damage important machinery and lead to less being recycled.
These are just a few things you can start doing to reduce your footprint, but do your own research, get creative, and go further!