You have been on the zero waste journey for some time. You have every zero waste swap lists out there, you have eliminated single-use plastic, and most items you now buy are biodegradable. …so… now what? If you feel like you can and want to do more, I made a list of advanced zero waste alternatives, swaps, and actions I am/have taken. Some of these means reducing my consumption more, some are long-term commitments and actions that indirectly reduce plastic. The post turned out to be rather long, so I had to separate them for greater clarity.
Food waste related swaps and actions
Reducing meat consumption
I actually included eating less meat on my zero waste swaps for beginners list, though it might be worth mentioning it here as well. Meat production is resource-heavy and incredibly polluting. I saw yet another news this week about a polluting incident from an industrial pig farm where I live (France), one of (apparently) many.
I finally got around to reading Eating Animals, a book by Jonathan Safran Foer and I can recommend it enough. It’s written in a non-judgemental common-sense way.
Help eliminate stereotypes about plant-based meals
Sharing yummy recipes that are either vegetarian or vegan or better yet cooking vegetarian/reduced meat feasts for others helps with the stigma that vegetarian food is boring or bland. If you are looking for inspo for some gourmand plant-based meals, I can recommend A Cookbook (That Happens to be Vegan) by Shannon Martinez and Mo Wyse (or any other cookbook by Shannon Martinez).
Reducing food waste
Tackle your own food waste with:
- meal planning/ batch cooking
- buying “ugly” vegetables
- you know those single bananas in the store that people tear off a bundle of bananas? Those normally get thrown in the garbage. Buy all the bananas. Buy the singles. Encourage stores to offer “damaged” fruit to kids or adults for free.
- learning how to preserve fresh foods longer/better
- make good use of the freezer, learn what freezes well and what doesn’t
- buying food produced in the country where you live reduced waste, helps the local economy, and avoids disasters like the kind that happened with quinoa in South America
- DIY things like nut “milks”, they are super easy to make and taste so much better than store-bought ones. Plus, raw ingredients for making nut milks are much easier to find without packaging (all it takes is your favorite nut, hot water, and a blender).
You don’t always have to follow a recipe
We get so caught up in following recipes sometimes, that we forget the basics. Soups are normally just vegetables cooked in either broth or spiced water. You can also blend it with a stick blender for a creamy soup.
My mom used to make a “minestrone soup” that I’m sure culinary experts certainly wouldn’t call that, but it was a great way to deal with leftovers. I make “everything” soup about once a month. You can even freeze ingredients until you have sufficient quantity.
Composting
If you don’t have a composter, or a yard to have one, you can get a container with special worms that compost and you keep them inside. It’s called vermicomposting and it’s great for tighter living quarters.
Buying cooking equipment that lasts “forever
After our old pans warped and lost their coating, we got a cast iron and 2 heavy-duty stainless steel pans. We had to go to a specialty store and they were a bit more expensive, but the food tastes so much better and they last a lifetime.
Growing some of your own food
Herbs are the simplest to grow and fit even the smallest apartments. I find parsley and thyme the easiest to grow, but I also had success with balcony radishes (they take about 1 month from seed to harvest) and strawberries.
For a more advanced option, join or start a community garden, organize a seed swap, and/or plant old heirloom varieties. Too much of our industrial food production comes from a handful of varieties, which is not great for several reasons. I got mine from individuals on eBay.
Re-use plastic containers and items that would go to the landfill in your (balcony) garden.
Reduce personal and home waste
DIY some of your own beauty products
Some cosmetics are ridiculously easy and fast to make, like hair rinses, clay masks, body scrubs, toners.
Swapping out plastic packaged body lotion for oils (pure or mixed oils) can also be great, depending on your skin type.
I’ve also seen that I don’t use a lot of the beauty items and creams that magazines tell me I should. Products I have eliminated are micellar water, makeup cleansers, cotton rounds, setting powders, 95% of products I’ve used on my hair… Learning about my skin and hair helped me take care of them better, and it so happened that that meant less stuff.
Repairing household machines and avoiding single-use add-ons
Each year, Europeans produce more than 16 kilograms (35 pounds) of electrical waste per person. About half of that junk is due to broken household appliances, and the EU recycles only about 40% of it.
Euronews
Be mindful to choose appliances without single-use replacement parts, like vacuums without replaceable bags. It will save material and money in the long run.
Swifter brooms are too convenient, with replaceable cloths, but you can make or buy washable ones.
I have an option of 2 repair cafés where I live, though that’s not an option for everyone. Most appliances are designed to break just about 2 years after warranty expires. And in many countries appliances get sealed so you can’t repair them. The EU passed legislation in October 2019 that appliances will need to be repairable for 10 years, the law is supposed to take effect in 2021.
Slowly swapping to sustainable fabrics
Clothes can last a long time, though they might need some mending along the line. If you are lucky and live close to an actual seamstress, they can fix or modify it professionally.
As an advanced zero waste alternatives to synthetics materials, you can try to buy clothes made out of organic cotton, linen, or hemp.
Next are household linens, like towels, sheets, etc. Careful of shedding of microplastic in synthetic fibers, by using a Guppy bag or a filter.
I also found out a couple of years ago that detergents contain microplastic, which is not on the ingredient list. This is how I do my laundry.
Advanced zero waste alternatives part 2 is HERE…. focusing on actions to take vs. single items to swap out.
