5 simple changes we made to be more environmentally friendly
Our impact, as humans, on the environment is staring at us in plain sight every day. Whether it's a BBC series by David Attenborough, a Netflix special or another news article about the negative effect we are having on the planet on which we are merely temporary tenants. We certainly wouldn't blame people for thinking that it's too late and what can individual people do to solve such global problems. However, every small change counts and here are 5 small simple adjustments that we have made to our lifestyle that has acted as a great starting point for us.
Glass Milk bottles
We are very lucky to have a community driven shop in our town where glass milk bottles are the default however there are now a lot of businesses online that are offering 'old-fashioned' milk deliveries that use glass bottles.
There is definitely some sort of nostalgia at play here and I am sure our grandparents generation are wondering why this is such a hot topic at the moment considering it was probably very common back in the day, however, this is an easy way to start reducing single use plastic. Although we lucky enough to have a great local option, businesses such as Kerr's Dairy and Thomson Dairies are delivering to plenty of locations across the UK.
Hand Soap & Washing up liquid
Tired of throwing out those plastic soap dispensers? We were too. We decided to buy some refillable glass bottles that we could refill with one of the many scented options offered by Faith & Nature, or you may have a refill shop near you where you can take the bottle itself up for a refill! Buying environmentally friendly is often seen as more expensive and this is one where you will have to weigh up the initial cost against an often repeated purchase that will sneak into your weekly shopping now and again.
We also switched to a refill for our washing up liquid which in contrast to the change for soap dispensers is a no-brainer as it is easily cheaper over time. For a 750ml bottle it costs us just over £1.50 for a refill and at present we are refilling the bottle around every 4 weeks. That's 12/13 less single-use plastics every year.
Buy loose fruit and vegetables
When you step back and think about it, why are produce items such as carrots, potatoes and celery sold in plastic bags? It really makes no sense at all! Don't get us wrong, supermarkets do have some options for loose products however these are few and far between and it is very easy to be attracted to the offers where the buy in bulk option is often the one in a plastic bag. Not only does this result in wasteful and damaging packaging, but you're also more likely to buy more than you need, which at lest for us, often resulted in food waste as well!
When we have local produce on our doorstep it is very difficult to justify not buying loose. A common pushback to this alternative is that a lot of people are based in densely populated cities but businesses such as Oddbox and Eversfield are quashing that trend by offering delivery directly aimed at these sorts of markets so as always there is plenty of alternatives out there.
Washable cleaning cloths
After ditching those single-use sponges (you know the ones) it is easy to realise the unnecessary waste that those sponges create. You don't need to get fancy with these as most online marketplaces will sell some sort of version of these. Finished using the cloth, pop it in the wash and reuse. No more throwing out sponges every few days and of course the plastic packaging that these packs come in!
Beeswax wraps
Cling film has been a staple for the British household ever since we were kids and although it might keep your sandwich fresh in the fridge, its impact of the environment is undoubtedly a negative one. It was created by accident in a chemistry lab in the 1930's and ever since after the Second World War, it has been used as a way to keep our food fresh for longer in the fridge. Not only is it extremely difficult to recycle, it is made from potentially harmful chemicals. These two reasons make it an easy decision to look for an alternative option. Beeswax wraps are our go-to alternative and not only are they made from a few key organic ingredients such as hemp and organic cotton, they are an easy swap for the sticky nightmare of our old favourite cling film.
You can buy some here at Ecovibe. Do you need a stat to push you to make the switch? The U.K alone goes through roughly 1.2 billion metres of cling film every year. Source: (Ecovibe)
Only the beginning...
Although these are only small changes it certainly got us thinking about what other changes we could make to our lifestyle in order to be environmentally conscious. Are we going to save the planet with these adjustments? No. But these are all positive steps in the right direction. We have also been making a lot of changes in areas such as hygiene and beauty products which we will be sharing with you next week!