7 tips to be more green in the kitchen

April 22 is Earth Day! When we talk about environmental concerns, we don't always dare to raise the issue of food management. In order to become more and more ecological, we have a lot of responsibility to do, particularly in our kitchens.

Here are 7 tips to be more eco-friendly in the kitchen. 

1. Avoid food waste to be greener in the kitchen

Canadians are the champions of food waste. Every year, the equivalent of $27 billion in food is thrown away in Canadian homes. This represents $771 per family. In fact, 47% of food waste occurs in our households.⁷

Solution : Plan a weekly menu so that you develop a grocery list that targets the necessary ingredients. Thus, it is possible to significantly reduce food waste by maximizing the yield of purchased food. Freeze your vegetables that are not fresh or their scraps to make homemade vegetable stock. Check out our recipe here!

2. Buy in bulk to be more eco-friendly in the kitchen

Buying in bulk is an effective way to combat food waste. Nowadays, food overpackaging is a big problem that affects our waste system and ecosystems. “Moreover, 70% of the plastic in our landfills comes from packaging in the food sector.”¹

Solutions: Carry reusable containers with you. Nuts, legumes, flours, pasta, nut butter and spices are all products available in bulk. Some dairy cooperatives sell their products in returnable glass packages.

3. Make homemade snacks to be greener in the kitchen

Processed snacks are the biggest culprit when it comes to overpackaged foods. Their individual packaging is very often made of mixed materials, which makes recycling impossible.

In addition to clogging up landfills, these packaging products constitute a significant portion of the cost of production. So, it goes without saying that the consumer must pay the cost of packaging, which drives up the price of food.

Solution: To remedy the situation, homemade snacks are a priority. Smoothies, muffins, trail mix, cookies are all good replacements.

Visit our favorite homemade snack recipes:

Healthy granola bar

Hiker's cookie

No-Bake Protein Balls with Cookie Dough Flavor

No-cook energy balls with hemp, apricots & vanilla

No-Bake Chocolate Crispy Squares

4. Reduce your meat consumption to be more eco-friendly in the kitchen

Excessive meat consumption has a serious impact on our environment on several levels.

First of all, more than 51% of greenhouse gas emissions come from animal production.² This represents more than the global production of emissions from the automobile industry.

Deforestation is also a glaring issue. Over the past 40 years, more than 40% of the Amazon rainforest has been cut down to allow cattle farming.³ and to supply North America with beef and veal.

Meat production requires a staggering amount of water. For comparison, 550 liters of water are needed in the production chain of a loaf of bread while 7,000 liters of water will have been used in the production of 100 grams of beef.⁴

Solution: The introduction of Meatless Monday is a good place to start. A varied diet offers various sources of protein and allows you to significantly reduce the amount of meat on the menu.

5. Become a member of a community-supported agriculture network to be greener in the kitchen

Members of a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) network receive baskets of fresh, local and seasonal food. These networks prepare baskets (often organic) and deliver their food without using food packaging.

Solution: By joining a network of CSAs, fresh, local, and eco-friendly foods become very accessible. The branches of La Boite à Grains are happy to act as a collection point for organic baskets, year after year. Find out how to adopt a local farmer and regularly get organic baskets!

6. Use reusable bags to be more eco-friendly in the kitchen

It's been more than a decade since Quebecers went green by using reusable grocery bags.

However, there is still a long way to go in order to eliminate fruit and vegetable bags. These small transparent bags are used extensively by consumers who resort to these plastic packaging under the pretext that they maintain the freshness of food and make it easier to transport.

Solution: Avoid using plastic fruit and vegetable bags or get reusable versions made from wick or fabric.

7. Opt for reusable straws to be more eco-friendly in the kitchen

The anti-straw movement is gaining more and more popularity among Canadians. Shocking images have been circulating on social media for several years, depicting marine animals clogged with plastic, particularly plastic straws.

Although no statistics are available on the use of disposable straws in Canada, our American neighbors use 500 million straws every day, enough to travel two and a half times the diameter of the Earth.^5,6

Solution: It's easy to omit disposable straws altogether or replace them with more sustainable options. Stainless steel straws are affordable, easy to use and do not rust.

About the author

Naturopaths from La Boite à Grains

Team of qualified and certified naturopaths (ND) in Gatineau in Outaouais.

Original article written by Véronique Cousineau, Naturopath

Sources

1: Radio-Canada: Report Zero-waste movement. September 2013

2: World Watch Institute

3: World Rainforest Report. John Revington

4: UN Commission on Sustainable Development, “Water—More Nutrition Per Drop,” 2004

5: Global News. Plastic straw ban taking hold in the Okanagan. Kelly Hayes

6: Get green now. The Environmental Impact of Plastic Straws – Facts, Statistics, and Infographic. Hugh. January 25, 2018

7: The cost of Canada’s annual food waste. Value Chain Management Center – Value Chain International inc.