For Keep Australia Beautiful Week we thought we’d get a few tips from some of our fave sustainable friends on how to do our bit.
Do you know our friend Meg Yonson? Meg is a recipe developer, art director & passionate foodie based in Sydney who has been working professionally in the food space for 10 years. This week we asked Meg for her top tips and tricks on how to Shake Up your grocery shop for a more sustainable approach.
Shake Up your grocery shop with Meg:
1. Don’t underestimate the power of your dollar
Every time we make a food purchase, we’re sending a message to the store we purchased from and the Farmer or producer that created it. If we stopped buying peaches in winter, there would be no demand and our grocers and supermarkets would stop shipping peaches from the US. If we started buying products that used recycled packaging, other brands would need to follow suit to keep up.
2. Buy in season
Produce tastes better and is cheaper when purchased in season. We’re also more likely to be buying from a local farmer.
3. Shop at farmers markets and food co-ops
We all know this one, but buying direct from the farm has a lot of benefits. The food is fresher, as it hasn’t been transported and stored for weeks on end and we’re supporting our local farmers directly, so they receive a better profit. You just can’t put a price on learning about where your food comes from and creating a relationship with the people who grow your food, which also makes us respect the food much more.
4. Search out recyclable or compostable packaging
We’ve come so far with our food packaging. I always try to buy products that have invested into compostable or easily recyclable packaging when they’re sitting next to a similar product that hasn’t.
5. Buy from bulk food stores
Best for shopping for dry goods, bulk food stores enable you to buy as little or as much as you like, so you don’t have products sitting in the back of your pantry until they go off. You can also bring your own jars and containers to fill up, reducing the need for packaging.
5. Pick your battles!
If you’re currently purchasing a lot of plastic and feel overwhelmed to shop ethically, perhaps start purchasing meat from your local butcher, take your own containers and bags, or do all of your dry goods shopping at a bulk food store that’s next to your supermarket. There are a lot of places where we can start our ethical shopping “journey” and the momentum will follow.
Time to Shake Up your grocery shop Beauty Foodies!
