Green grocery shopping

[DevaMajka]

What are your best green living tips for grocery shopping/eating.
I feel like this is the area that needs the most work for us.

Would you mind sharing some tips for me to keep in mind when I'm at the store, or planning food for the week?

I just got canvas bags, so I plan to use them next time I go shopping. Those who use them- do you just carry them along with you as you shop? These bags won't fold up very small and fit in my purse or anything.

[frogguruami]

I take all the bags and cram them inside of one of them, then just carry it in like I do my purse. When I check out I put a bag on the belt and then put everything behind it that I want in it. Then put down the next bag and everything that goes in that one and so on. (BTW, don't be surprised if the cashier tries to ring your bags up, lol. My bags are so well used that they look like they have been drug behind a car AND they have another stores logo on them and the cashier still searches fro a bar code.)

I try to buy things with minimal packaging. Dry beans instead of canned, a bag of popcorn instead of microwave, things in glass instead of plastic (glass is more readily recyclable and can be repurposed), try to find a produce market or farmer's market so you will be supporting local farmers and merchants...ok that's all i have right now if i think of anything else I will come back!!!

[monkaha]

When you reuse your bags at the grocery store, remind the cashier to give you the bag credit. All the grocery stores around here give you a nickel for every bag you bring in to reuse. But most cashiers either don't know or forget about the credit.

[LilMama23]

I go to the self check-out. I put my bags on the rounder in place of the plastic bags, and ask the clerk to take them off, because it will try to charge you for them. They press a button, and I'm able to load the bags up myself. I prefer it that way - I know how everything fits and I can do it quicker myself. After I'm done ringing everything up, I ask the clerk to give me the bag credit (5 cents per bag) and then I pay.

I also buy things in bulk to reduce packaging.

[AngelBee]

Originally Posted by monkaha

When you reuse your bags at the grocery store, remind the cashier to give you the bag credit. All the grocery stores around here give you a nickel for every bag you bring in to reuse. But most cashiers either don't know or forget about the credit.

nak
i did not know that

[sanguine_speed]

Originally Posted by Deva33mommy

What are your best green living tips for grocery shopping/eating.
I feel like this is the area that needs the most work for us.

One of the greenest things you can do is buy local foods and products. The average piece of produce travels 1500miles to your table. If you can buy locally-produced foods, you're saving the environment a lot of contamination in terms of fossil fuel burning AND in fewer chemicals used to preserve the food for such long commute. If you live in a cold winter climate (like I do), you can try and find canned foods like tomatoes that are produced locally.

[Merilin]

We also carry our own bags to the store. But sometimes, if it is a lot, I just bring a big box in the store, and have them fill the box. I can put it in the car myself, and DH helps carrying it upstairs. This prevents the bags from falling all over in the car.

If I can I try to buy locally, however, we have long winters here, so all the local farms are closed. I try to stock up during summer and fall, either by canning things or freezing things.

We buy a lot of grains in bulks, where we bring our own containers. I remember, when I grew up, that you could bring our own milk bottle to the store and have it filled, but haven't seen that in years. But I do bring my own boxes to have things at the Deli packed.

[tamagotchi]

Our number one green shopping tip is to walk or bike to the store instead of driving!!

We usually walk and use backpacks and canvas bags (or DS's stroller for heavy things), but we also have a bike set up with panniers that we can use for bigger shopping trips.

We put our large and small shopping bags inside a backpack. We use small cloth bags for most produce like apples, oranges, onions, potatoes.

We bring our own various-sized mason jars to the store for bulk items like rice, beans, flour, peanut butter, honey, etc. We even bring our spice containers and refill them with bulk spices. This way we don't have to use plastic bags, and we always get the right amount to fill our mason jars precisely without waste. Just before leaving for the store, we set up all the mason jars we will need, and put them in our shopping backpack. It's actually really pleasant and convenient!

It's amazing how much less garbage we have, now that we buy most foods without packaging. Our store also gives us 5 cents bag credit for each jar or cloth bag used in place of a plastic bag.

[eco_mama]

i put my bags in the cart. and put all bags inside of one.

buy in bulk. and local. we joined our 1st csa this year.

minimize packaged products.

if buying something packaged, make sure it's recyclable.

use cloth produce bags.

ohh, and yes, bike or walk if possible!!

[DevaMajka]

Wonderful ideas! Thanks- now I just have to start doing it all!
I can walk in the summer, but I'm a freeze baby, so not so much in the winter. lol

[Sustainer]

Look for organic. Buy organic whenever possible. It's better for you and the Earth. If you can, shop in a natural food store instead of a conventional supermarket (look in the phone book under "health food"). :

http://www.doortodoororganics.com/or...hy_organic.htm

[SandyBeachBums]

1. Actually eating what we make. If I make soup then we eat it all. Sometimes I even freeze a portion or two before I serve it. I like mason jars for that.

2. Have a leftover day to do the above. Do this the day before you plan to shop if you shop once a week. Clean out the whole fridge, too. Take everything out and scrub it up a bit. Reshelf all your goodies. Freeze anything you don't think you will eat. Chop up that half of onion in the bottom bin. You will feel better about what you have and you might get inspired, so you don't get wasteful at the store.

3. If you can buy from bulk bins than only buy what you need. If you need 1 cup of flour or only one meals worth of falafel than buy just that.

These tips allow you to do the things like buy more organic or a new cloth bag. Also, they reshape how you look at your food stuff. They give you a wholesome and good connection to your food so you can make good choices when you eat and shop.

[reducereuserecycle]

One of my favorites is refusing a bag. Like if we go to a store to buy one item we will say no bag please. They usually look at you like you are crazy and say we have to give you a bag for security reasons. Then you have to tell them that you care about the environment and consider a plastic bag for one small item to be a waste. If they still argue that you have to take a bag, then say, I will keep my receipt out to show them at the door. Sometimes (especially during all my crazy pregnancy hormones, Dh has nearly had to drag me out becauase I've gotten into heated discussions over the issue. It makes me mad that they would consider a bag a security issure. I mean, there are millions of Target bags in the world. People could easily walk right in a store with an old bag and fill it up and leave. Also, you have to be on top of the game because if you refuse the bag after they've already put your item into the bag, chances are, they will actually throw the bag away as if it is contaminated which totally defeats the purpose. That drives me crazy. Also, most plastic store bags are printed with lead ink so it make me feel even better about using cloth bags.

[AuntLavender]

If biking or walking isn't practical

Originally Posted by tamagotchi

Our number one green shopping tip is to walk or bike to the store instead of driving!!

Try just driving less. I only drive my van twice a week. My youngest has speech and occupational therapy on Tuesdays and Thursdays so we also go to the store on one of those days or the library.

DH rides his bike or drives his motorcycle (65mpg) to work!

When we move we'll be closer to stores and able to walk but not right now.

I also second the Farmer's Market or local produce stand. There is a produce stand by our library so we go there on library days. I also bring my own bags. I hate hate hate plastic bags!

Sincerely,
Debra, homeschooling mom of 4 ages 10, 9, 7, and 45 mos

[kdabbler]

Originally Posted by monkaha

When you reuse your bags at the grocery store, remind the cashier to give you the bag credit. All the grocery stores around here give you a nickel for every bag you bring in to reuse. But most cashiers either don't know or forget about the credit.

Does anyone know if Stop & Shop offers credit? I know when I used to live in the DC area I think it was Giant and Safeway offered it.

Speaking of Stop & Shop, I got a coupon in the mail to receive two of their reusable shopping bags:
http://www.stopandshop.com/stores/

They're just nylon bags but what's cool is that they fold up small and then have two snap closures. Small enough to fit in your pocketbook.

[AuntLavender]

That looks like the bag I got at Whole Foods but

Originally Posted by kdabbler

Does anyone know if Stop & Shop offers credit? I know when I used to live in the DC area I think it was Giant and Safeway offered it.

Speaking of Stop & Shop, I got a coupon in the mail to receive two of their reusable shopping bags:
http://www.stopandshop.com/stores/

They're just nylon bags but what's cool is that they fold up small and then have two snap closures. Small enough to fit in your pocketbook.

I think it was $2.19!! Last night I used it at Publix and it held 2 gallons of milk, a small pie, a quart of ice cream, a pound of chicken, 2 bags of salad mix, a bottle of baby aspirin, and a bag of rolls!

There is no snap on mine but it has a pretty lemon vintage print on it and it's made of polyfabric (http://www.poppackaging.com/Pages/polyfabric.htm) and so far is very durable.

Sincerely,
Debra, homeschooling mom of 4 ages 10, 9, 7, and 45 mos