One of the places you’ll find the most plastic in your home is in the kitchen. Fortunately, it’s also one of the easiest places in our house to give plastic the heave-ho. Here’s how:

Your Plastic-Free Kitchen

1) Use reusable bags. Reusable cloth, jute or recycled fiber bags last for years and eliminate the need for plastic shopping bags. Many communities now charge a nickel for every plastic bag a shopper uses, which has been enough to convince people to bring their own bags.

2) Buy fresh, unpackaged food. One of the biggest sources of plastic in a kitchen is all the plastic that food comes wrapped in it. This is especially true if you’re buying pre-packaged food that’s supposed to be convenient – but ultimately just creates a lot of trash. In addition to reusable shopping bags, get a set of reusable mesh produce bags. For bigger fruits and vegetables like apples, oranges, pears, eggplant and onions, you can skip bags altogether.

3) Purchase food in glass jars rather than plastic containers. You can find tomato sauce, condiments, olives, peppers, soups, spices and more in glass, rather than plastic.

4) Use glass storage containers. Glass jars and dishes with lids are very effective storage containers – they don’t leach chemicals into food, they’re durable, and you can easily see what’s inside them. I re-use glass tomato sauce jars and juice bottles. I also prowl yard sales and thrift stores for glass dishes with lids that I can buy for a couple of dollars at most.

5) Make your own soda. A big source of plastic in the kitchen comes from soda bottles. We haven’t bought soda since we got a counter-top carbonation machine. We simply filter a jug of water (which takes about a minute), pour the water in the bottle that fits the machine, pull a lever to add carbon dioxide to the water (another minute at most), and add whatever flavor we choose.

6) Make your own bottled water. Single-use water bottles are a significant source of kitchen plastic. That dandy carbonator you got for making soda is also great for bubbling up a bottle of filtered water. Or skip the bottles and just filter your water and pour. We use this one, but you may be able to find others in your local hardware store. (We bought ours before glass bottles were available.)

7) Keep your own bottled water ready-to-go in the fridge. One reason why people buy bottled drinks – especially water – is because they don’t take water with them when they leave home. Keep a pitcher of filtered water in your refrigerator and an empty water bottle next to your purse or briefcase so you remember to fill up your bottle before you leave home. Teach your kids to do the same before they leave for school or a sporting event. You can also fill up a few reusable bottles of water and keep them in the fridge so you can grab and go.

8) Replace plastic utensils with stainless steel, wood, and silicone. I primarily use stainless steel or silicone spatulas when I’m frying and sauteeing, and wooden spoons when I’m baking. I have glass 1 cup, 2 cup and 4 cup measuring pitchers and aluminum measuring cups and spoons in a variety of sizes. I also use glass and aluminum mixing bowls. Look for these and other non-plastic kitchen tools in the pots and pans section of your grocery store or in the kitchen utensils section of a department store.

9) Make your own yogurt. Yogurt is super easy to make at home and will save you lots and lots of throwaway yogurt containers. Here’s how I do it.

This is only the beginning. How are you getting plastic out of your kitchen?

The post 9 Steps to a Plastic-Free Kitchen appeared first on Big Green Purse.

What Makes You Green When You Buy in Bulk? 

For starters, buying in bulk is one of the best ways to save money on groceries. Why? Larger sizes deliver the same amount of product using less energy and materials than the equivalent number of smaller packages.

The next time you go shopping, browse the snack aisle and compare the difference for yourself. When you buy one large box of cookies, all you pay for are the cookies and the one box. But if you buy a “snack pack” of ten or twelve small bags, you end up with all those individual bags, plus the display box they came in and the cellophane wrapped around them. That’s a lot of excess packaging – and all that extra wrapping costs you more money.

At my local grocery store, one 15 oz. box of cookies runs around $3.99 or $.27/ounce. The package of 12 snack bags costs $5.79, or $.34 ounce. By some estimates, a family of four can save as much as $2,000 per year just buying in bulk. If you need snack packs for yourself or your kids, it’s much cheaper and more eco to buy reusable containers you can easily refill from the larger bag. Bonus: The snack containers will do a better job of protecting the snacks from getting crushed in a lunch bag or backpack.

Here’s how I saved $20 buying cat food in bulk.

Still not convinced? Take a look at these stats from a cool infographic BIG has on their website:

* If Americans purchased all of their coffee from the bulk bins for 1 month, we’d save 20 MILLION pounds of foil packaging, the equivalent of almost 8,000 compact cars

* If we purchased oatmeal from the bulk bins, we’d save 5 times the waste of its packaged equivalent

* If we purchased all of the almonds we buy in bulk just for one month, 6 MILLION pounds of waste would be saved from landfills, the equivalent of 522.5 elephants!

HOW TO BUY IN BULK

You’ll find the larger sizes of bulk food in the same section as the smaller containers. If you’re packaging up bulk food yourself, the bulk food section will probably be in a specific section of the grocery store. Put food in bags or other containers, weigh it on the spot, write down the weight and perhaps the product code on a tag or tape, affix the price to the container, and take it to the check out. Don’t be put off if this sounds like it takes too much time. It won’t add more than a few minutes to your shopping schedule.

You’ll probably find plastic bags to use for your loose bulk purchases. But why not bring your own bags and jars? I use mesh bags like these that I can fill up and then put right in my refrigerator or pantry when I get home. If they get dirty, I just toss them in the washing machine with my towels.

I also use glass or stainless steel containers with tight fitting lids. You will want to weigh the containers before you fill them with food so you don’t pay for the extra weight.

NOTE: You don’t need to buy tons of something to take advantage of what bulk buying has to offer. Whether you buy a lot or a little from the bulk bins, you’ll be saving money because you’ll be paying for less packaging and more actual food.

This week when I go shopping, here’s what I’ll be buying from the bulk bins:

* Loose leaf tea

* Popcorn

* Almonds

* Walnuts

* Cereal

* Apples

* Pears

* Brown sugar

* Rolled oats

* Sesame sticks

* Bagels

What about you?

Need bulk food containers?

Before you buy anything new, check your cupboards for containers you already have that will make bulk shopping easy and trash-free. But if you need anything else, we’ve combed through the offerings on Amazon to find mesh produce bags and glass and BPA-free plastic containers that can help. A one-time investment in some reusable containers now will end up saving you hundreds of dollars over the long term. (Remember that we earn a tiny commission on any purchases on our Amazon store, which helps us continue to bring you expert advice for free. Thanks!)

 RELATED POSTS:

The Truth Behind Buying in Bulk

Buying in Bulk Just Saved Me $20!

The post Want a Discount? Buy in Bulk to Save Money, Cut Trash, Shop Smart appeared first on Big Green Purse.