More people are looking for ways to reduce single use plastic in their homes which is fantastic, and it doesn’t have to be complicated! We’re here with 5 simple swaps you can make to reduce plastic in your home, as well as your usage out of home, to do your bit to become more eco-friendly!
Book milk deliveries in glass bottles
A fantastic thing you can do to support local businesses, as well as reduce single use plastic, is to swap out your cartons for milk deliveries in glass bottles! Not only will this make your life easier as it will be delivered to your doorstep a couple of times per week, but you will also be helping the planet!
With companies like McQueens Dairies and their local milk delivery, after you’ve had your milk delivered, you simply leave the bottle on your doorstep when you’re done, and the milkman will collect it when they drop off another delivery. The bottle is then sanitised and reused up to 25 times! Plus, you can get dairy-free milk alternatives, like oat milk in glass bottles, to suit everyone in the family.
Get glass tupperware
Another serious win is to get yourself glass tupperware. Not only does this help to reduce microplastics which can be a risk with plastic tupperware, but it will also mean you use less single-use coverings like cling film or foil. When you have something to store, simply pop it into one of your glass tupperware tubs and it’ll stay so nice and fresh. This works for anything if you get a few different sized containers!
Reusable shopping bags
Getting yourself some reusable shopping bags is such a great way to save money each time you swap, as well as reducing your plastic use. Keep a set of bags in the car or by the door for your bigger shops, then carry a reusable tote bag with you to keep those bits and pieces you pick up throughout the day! You could potentially save hundreds of plastic bags each year with this small swap.
Bars of soaps and shampoos
Another common single use plastic item are shampoos, conditioners and soaps, so swap them out for bars! They contain more natural ingredients, and you completely remove the plastic waste. Whilst some plastic containers can be recycled, often the pumps can’t, and they go into landfill. You can get bars of soaps and shampoos/conditions in many supermarkets now, or look for local suppliers for all-natural ingredients.
Try a wholefoods store and buy fruit/veg locally
Lastly, instead of buying many of your cupboard items, fruit and veg from the supermarket which tend to be heavily packaged in plastic, try shopping locally in wholefoods stores and grocers. With things like nuts, seeds, oats, pastas and rice, often they come in plastic, but great wholefoods stores all over the world have them stored without plastic.
You can either use paper bags to take it home, or even better, bring your own containers to refill directly. Then with your fruit and veg, local produce will be fresher and even more delicious, with the added benefit of no plastic! Plus, it will be seasonal, which is great for your health, too.
