Food: The best way to be kind to the environment with Christmas fare is to buy locally produced and seasonal food, that way you're off to a head start in cutting down the transport miles (in some cases thousands of miles by heavily polluting jet plane). Support your local butchers, greengrocers and /or farmers market, but before you order your bird or joint, ask your butcher about its' provenance. Local seasonal produce should be in plentiful supply including all the traditional vegetable favourites; onions, sprouts, swede, cabbage, parsnips, carrots and potatoes as well as walnuts and chestnuts. Some festive favourites can't be local in origin, such as dates and brazil nuts etc, but if you choose Fair Trade or organic producers you are at least making an ethical and 'greener' purchase. The Fairtrade website and the Soil Association website have more information.
Some tips to cut down food related waste:
- Look for products that have the least amount of packaging, and if this isn't possible try to buy those that carry the recyclable plastic symbol.
- Buy larger packs rather than multiple small packs - the proportion of packaging will be less.
- If you're lucky enough still to have a milkman deliver your milk - order extra glass bottles rather than stocking up at the last minute with plastic ones.
- As at all other times of year use re-useable shopping bags or re-use plastic bags rather than just accepting new plastic bags with every purchase.
- If you are having a party try to avoid paper cups and plates. It may be more convenient, but in the end it creates lots more rubbish and as most are coated they are really not that easy to recycle!
Drink: There are an increasing number of organic beverages available, from cordials and juices to beers and wines - so why not give them a try. Another two areas to think about if you're looking to be more environmentally friendly are the transport miles (embedded energy costs) and packaging.
- Choose local: As with food look for locally produced drinks. This can be be particularly important in the wine department as a number have literally travelled from the other side of the world. There are of course great alternative choices available throughout Europe and a burgeoning British wine industry.
- Packaging: Buying larger sizes bottles will reduce the proportion of packaging to content. Glass is the best packaging material from an environmental perspective, but where this isn't an option look for the recycling symbol on any plastics and cartons. When choosing wine try to choose bottles with real corks. Cork production is a very eco-friendly industry where no trees are killed as only small sections of bark are stripped from trees which continue to thrive. This industry also supports a local population in maintaining a habitat in southern Europe which is very important for the survival of rare and increasingly threatened species such as the Barbary deer, Iberian Lynx and Spanish Imperial eagle.
|