In order to calculate the impact of our plastic-free grocery shopping habits, I photographed my family’s grocery trips throughout the month of March 🙂
Compared to the average grocery shopper, I probably saved …
- 35 produce bags (by putting fruits/veggies directly in my cart)
- 20+ plastic grocery bags (by always bringing reusable grocery bags)
- 17 plastic bags (by buying dry goods with my containers)
- 13 plastic wrappers (by opting for loose produce and buying hard cheeses with my containers)
- 4 cardboard boxes (by buying dried pasta and dishwasher tabs with my containers)
- 3 plastic tubs (by buying yogurt and soft cheeses in glass containers)
- 3 milk cartons (by buying dairy in consigned glass containers)
- 3 glass containers (by buying honey and oils with my containers
- 2 egg cartons (by refilling my compostable egg carton)
- 1 styrofoam tray (by buying sausages with my container)
- 1 plastic jug (by buying laundry detergent with my container)
- And 300+ candy wrappers! (by buying chocolate turtles and peanut butter cups in bulk)
Over the course of one year (52 weeks), this would amount to saving …
- 936 plastic bags
- 169 plastic wrappers
- 52 cardboard boxes
- 39 plastic tubs
- 39 milk cartons
- 39 glass containers
- 26 egg cartons
- 13 styrofoam trays (by buying sausages with my container)
- 13 plastic jugs (by buying laundry detergent with my container)
- And 3900+ candy wrappers!
And this doesn’t include all the plastic I already avoided by changing our family’s eating and cleaning habits 😀
Actively avoiding plastic when you’re grocery shopping can make a BIG difference. That’s because there’s so much plastic surrounding our food 🙁 Bringing reusable grocery bags to the store is important, but don’t stop there. Consider skipping the plastic produce bags, and look for plastic-free and package-free alternatives for items you regularly buy. And if you’re so inclined, let your local grocery stores know you’d like to see less plastic and more bulk bins 😉💚🌎
Hi Tippi,
Thank you for showing us how it can be done. Which stores do you shop in for each food item?
Hi, Judy! The main places I go for package-free, bulk shopping are Épicerie Loco, Bulk Barn and Adonis.
Épicerie Loco: organic eggs, organic cheddar, organic mozzarella, organic maple syrup, organic granola, organic rice, organic milk, cream, organic fruit and vegetables, liquid laundry detergent, liquid shampoo, dish tabs
Bulk Barn: Dried pasta, flours, sugars, honey, peanut butter, dried fruit, nuts, seeds, granola, potato chips, chocolate chips, candies
Adonis: Fresh mozzarella, labneh (my cream cheese substitute), Italian sausages
For produce, I subscribe to a weekly Lufa Farms basket and pick up loose produce at Avril, IGA or Super C. Pretty soon I’ll start going to my local farmer’s market (can’t wait!).
Let me know if you’re having a hard time finding a specific item plastic-free. I’d be happy to help! 🙂
My husband is concerned abt buying veggies and not putting in bags. Thoughts? Love all your tips here and on insta. Also how does it work w your own containers do they weigh?
Hi, Margaret! The way I look at it, I’m going to wash the veggies no matter what before eating so the plastic doesn’t do much. Any germs that might have been added to vegetables from the produce aisle to my home will be washed off anyway! 🙂
When I bring my own containers, I either weigh them myself or get them weighed by a store employee (depends on the store). But both these methods require the store to have a checkout system that allows the cashier to deduct that weight (not all stores do). If I shop the cheese or meat counters at a regular grocer store, they have scales for doing that so they just give me a sticker for the price of item (not including the weight of my container). At stores that have bulk bins but no means to subtract the weight of the container (for example, a grocery store with a bulk aisle), I recommend bringing a lightweight, mesh bag that won’t add any substantial weight to the product. Or you can simply reuse a plastic bag you saved from your last visit 😉