‘Remember, too, that all fruit and vegetables are superfoods,’ says Oxborrow. ‘There are plenty of different varieties grown here that you can explore – so do you really need those goji berries that have been imported from China?’ 30% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the UK due to agriculture and food production.
Reduce Waste and Packaging Photo Gallery
We all know about recycling packaging and food waste via our kerbside collections (or a garden compost bin or wormery if you have room). But even more important is to reduce both in the first place. Simple steps such as always carrying your own bags, coffee cups and water bottles, and favouring loose produce over packaged really helps.
Shop at markets or greengrocers rather than the supermarket, try a veg-box delivery, have milk delivered in glass bottles (in an electric vehicle!). ‘Use your consumer influence – tell the manager at your local supermarket why you’re shopping elsewhere and ask them to offer more eco options,’ suggests Oxborrow. Meal planning and shopping lists go a long way towards reducing food waste, and mean you only buy what you need. Many shops are removing best-before dates from their fruit and veg because it’s down to you what you think is usable.
Create meals around what you have, not what you fancy. Get into the habit of using up leftovers in soups, stocks, stews and smoothies. The campaign Love Food Hate Waste has lots of handy hints and recipes for ‘compleating’ (using every part of a fruit or vegetable). For an added incentive, bear in mind that according to the One Blue Dot guide, the average UK household lost £470 last year in avoidable food waste (that figure increases to £700 for those with children).
