Comments on: Green Shopping 101

By: Kathy

Kathy — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 14:12:48 +0000

I love the discussion! I agree on the recycling arrows on plastic! I have two tubs for plastic, one that the county that I live in accepts which is #1 and #1, and another container that the county that I work in accepts which is all others, this seems to work well and the county that I work in doesn’t mind us using their facility. I use cloth napkins all the time, in fact my in-laws gave me a hard time just the other day about using them. I do use paper towels but I reserve them for things like drying off chicken. I do occasionally use paper towel for other things and I will then toss it into the composting bucket. As long as you don’t toss the ones in you used on meat you can compost the paper towels. Since my husband and I have started paying close attention to what we buy and the packaging and composting as much as we can, we have reduced or trash by a considerable amount. I used to use the 30 gallon trash bags now I am down to the 1 – 2 gallon bags and only have about 2 – 3 of those per week and it us usually because it contains meat containers. It is pretty rewarding to see what a difference you can have.

By: George Dreckmann

George Dreckmann — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 20:15:45 +0000

Hi,

As much as 25% of food waste from households consists of fruits and veggies. Make sure that you only buy what you can use in a couple of days. This can have a real impact on what is wasted.

The web URL above is our City of Madison waste reduction site. You might find some other good ideas there, just like to good ones in this article.

And, Linda is spot on about those $#%^ arrows on plastic.

By: Linda

Linda — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 13:09:18 +0000

Please don’t advise folks to look for the recycling symbol and let them believe that means the product is recyclable in their home program! Our city is currently struggling with this battle and it’s a huge contamination issue for our processor. Because of available markets, we can only accept BOTTLE shaped plastics, yet our residents throw everything with a recycling symbol in the bin (our literature, web, etc. clearly state we can only recycle bottles). We get cups, tubs, deli trays, clam shells, Styrofoam cups, plates, plastic bags, everything! The best message to give everyone is KNOW YOUR PROGRAM. They can only collect and recycle items they have a local market to sell them to! Thanks!

By: Sherri

Sherri — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 01:13:51 +0000

When I buy a gift for someone I also buy the store’s reusable bag as a gift bag, so when they go shopping at the store they can use the bag.

By: Linda A.

Linda A. — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 14:52:43 +0000

Lots of good tips, however, with the exceptions of paper products, buying in bulk just isn’t practical for small households of fewer than four people. As for chips and cookies, I’ve got a better idea where they’re concerned, and that is, it’s better to not buy chips and cookies at all. It’s a lot healthier for all concerned if you don’t. Also, buying in bulk often ends up costing you more because you often end up buying more than you need, like at those warehouse stores.

Instead of having to remember to take along reusable shopping bags, I just get the plastic bags and recycle them. I doubt that in this country we’ll ever completely stop using plastic and paper bags until the stores stop making them available.

While buying local is a nice idea, not everything, such as certain fruits and veggies, is available locally. (I don’t know of anyone in New England, where I live, who grows bananas or citrus fruits, for example.)

I still buy paper towels, but I use them much less than I used to, and, I usually use one sheet several times instead of just using it only once and then throwing it away.

I’ve always liked the idea of rechargeable batteries, but their initial high cost (the recharger and the batteries themselves) prevent me from using them.

Wiadana, your tip about reusing every package possible is excellent. I can remember when I was a kid, my father had a workbench in our cellar. Above the workbench was a wooden beam onto which he’d attached screw caps from baby food jars. He would keep small pieces of hardware such as nuts, bolts, screws, etc., in the empty jars that my mother had cleaned out, and he’d screw the jars into the caps and that’s how he’d store them. Then, whenever he needed a nut, bolt, screw, etc., he’d just unscrew the jar from the cap, take what he needed, and screw the jar back in. I always thought that was so neat, and it was, literally as well as figuratively.

By: Lynn Blevins

Lynn Blevins — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 19:02:37 +0000

The big discount wharehouse stores often offer larger sizes, but sometime it is just several regular sized items packed in a larger box or shrink wrapped together. So sometimes what seems like buying in larger sizes actually increases packaging.

By: Josie

Josie — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 18:20:12 +0000

I have two reusable bags that are in my suitcase so that I can use them even when I travel. I also have some plastic grocery bags in my luggage in case I need them. I keep reusable bags in my car so that they are handy when I grocery shop.

By: Trey Granger

Trey Granger — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 01:02:31 +0000

I just started buying the eco-friendly laundry detergent, which contains less phosphates that pollute water. I was surprised that it was cheaper than name brands of detergent, so I’d add that to the green shopping list.

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 21:46:04 +0000

Two things:
#1) If you’re going out and not sure if you’ll be making a stop at the grocery store, take some old plastic grocery bags from a previous trip and re-use them. They’re not as good as cloth bags, but they take up a lot less space, and you can re-use a bag about 50 times.
#2) Let people who aren’t as motivated by moral incentives (as economists call them) know that re-usable grocery bags are easier to carry and don’t break. They can afford to be designed and made better, because they’re intended to be used more than once. Once my mother’s church convinced her to use reusable bags, she discovered this. (I had already been doing it for 10 years.)

By: vviadana

vviadana — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 15:17:12 +0000

Another tip. Don’t just reuse your shopping bags. Reuse every package possible. I reuse all jars and plastic bottles for as many times as possible.