10 Simple Ways to be More Sustainable – and Why I am Not Zero Waste

I have always admired anyone who could label themselves as zero waste. Unfortunately, I find it is just not possible.

Instead of striving to be completely zero waste, and then finding out it is way to hard and going back to old ways of waste, I figure it is best to make better choices and do my best in a more achievable way.

First of all, I want to say we do try our hardest. We donate or recycle everything possible at our local recycle center. when you live on a farm, something will break beyond repair. A tire will go flat that can’t be fixed – no recycling options for that, or glass will shatter – unfortunately, it’s a hazard so broken glass cannot be recycled. Another reason I think being zero waste isn’t attainable is current global recycling processes. When you try and recycle your plastic or cardboard, don’t be surprised to hear that most of that stuff ends up being thrown away. If the plastic or cardboard is even a little bit dirty, it is destined for the garbage or worse yet shipping to other countries and disposed of in irresponsible ways it ends up in our oceans. If you don’t believe me, I encourage you to do more research on this.

Here are 10 ATTAINABLE ways to be more sustainable:

Bring reusable bags to the grocery store. I cannot believe this is not a given by now. I am blown away by how many people still go for plastic shopping bags, even when you have to purchase them now!
Use fabric produce bags and shop for items that aren’t prepackaged. Example, buy lettuce and tomatoes that aren’t in a clamshell or plastic packaging and use your own fabric produce bags.
When possible, purchase local items. Imagine how much fossil fuels it takes to bring those South African grapes to your table. Shop at your local farmers market or look for local products in your grocery store. An easy way I do this, is to eat seasonally. Eating whatever is in season in your location, it is bound to make it easier to buy locally.
Buy in glass when bringing your own container isn’t possible. Where we live there are limited options for buying in bulk. When I am at the store buying almond butter, I always opt for the glass container over plastic. Glass and aluminum can be recycled indefinitely. Plastic has a short lifespan before it’s destined for the landfill.
Go organic – at least a portion of your groceries. Buying organic isn’t just better for your body, it’s better for the environment. Non-organic produce uses unsustainable farming practices and pesticides that essentially kills all bugs, which impacts other wildlife.
Even better, grow your own produce while you can. A lot of organic growers are still big-box companies who grow organic as a label because organic is becoming more and more popular with ethical shoppers. These organic growers will cut corners in most ways to scrape by on keeping their organic certification to save them money. So it is always better to grow your own produce or buy from local farmers.
Buy used. This is actually something I now love. I rarely buy anything new anymore. On my free time, I love going to thrift stores and seeing what I can find for a bargain price. Buying used, you can get items you wouldn’t normally be able to afford and find one-of-a-kind items.
Walk! Unfortunately, we don’t live in a place where I can walk to get groceries but we do cut down on how often we drive into town and when we do, I try to park in one place and walk to each different store I need to go into. Plus it keeps me fit!
Use non-toxic cleaners and bath products. Without even thinking about being more sustainable I always make responsible choices in my cleaners and what goes on my skin. These products are being so popular, you usually don’t have to pay much more to go for non-toxic items and it is SO easy to make most of these on your own.
Eat less meat – at least one day a week go meat free. I love doing this because it makes me explore my creativity in the kitchen. My husband loves meat and needs a lot of protein because he works outdoors a lot. Most of the time he can’t even tell the difference!

There! Easy 10 ways to be more sustainable! Those don’t sound so bad do they? I would love for you all to try out some of these options and I would love to hear about what you already do at home to be more sustainable!