Green kitchen tips, Part 4
For the last in this series on greening your kitchen, we’d like to talk about the point of having a kitchen in the first place which is to prepare food!
The most important tip we can give from both a sustainability perspective and a money saving one, is to stop wasting food.
It’s unbelievable that according to surveys, up to 40% of the food Americans purchase is tossed.
That means 40% of our grocery bills is going down the toilet.
Now we know what you’re thinking, “That’s not true in my family!”
You might want to conduct a little experiment just to prove you’re right and not part of the majority on this one.
Just put all your food waste into bags or jars in the freezer for a week. Include celery ends, carrot scrapings, and fat you cut from meat as well as whatever’s turned black at the back of your fridge, plus bits you leave when you empty a bottle or cereal box and anything you’d normally throw out when past its “sell by” date. And don’t forget what’s left on the plate after the family finishes eating. You can even ask your children to bring home their uneaten bits from lunch (and promise you won’t get upset with them for it.)
You’ll most likely be surprised at what you accumulate.
But even if you’re not, there probably is not a single American who couldn’t use a wake-up call when it comes to food waste. So no matter your percentage, try to improve.
Remember you could save up to 40% of our grocery bills by actually eating the food we do buy.
Try composting
And of course, what we don’t eat should be composted because rotting food in landfills causes the release of methane gas, which contributes to climate change. Food should never go down the drain or in the trash, but preferably be used or composted.
In our families, Lynn composts herself and Corey subscribes to a city service that picks up food waste along with yard waste. Lynn has been known, during the winter, when the compost bins fill up, to haul her food waste across town to add them to Corey’s.
Another money saving tip
Another tip for saving money and food is to use glass instead of plastic containers. Glass is better than plastic because it doesn’t leach chemicals into food. You don’t have to spend money on glass containers, you can do what we do and save them from other purchases. And remember to look for canning jars at garage sales or at your local thrift store.
One of our summer favorites is to get out of the kitchen altogether! Save electricity, keep your home cool and have fun by making or investing in a solar oven. We love our Sun Oven.
Efficient refrigerator/freezer use
Vacuum the coils under the fridge and keep the freezer as fully packed as possible.
Do not stand in front of the open fridge trying to decide between cheeses. Remove both from the fridge, decide, then open the door and put one back.
Some cleaning tips
- It doesn’t make sense to use chemicals to “clean” kitchen, since many are linked to respiratory problems, endocrine problems and cancer.
- Make your own using vinegar, lemon, and baking soda among other simple ingredients
- Read labels. Look for products that contain only words that are familiar and that you can pronounce.
- Look for concentrated supplies which means less packaging or buy in bulk for the same reason.
- Avoid bleach. Try borax or hydrogen peroxide instead. Natural anti-bacterials include tea tree oil and lavender essential oil.
And finally, a few ideas about efficiently washing up.
- Let the dishwasher do the work (don’t re-rinse)
- Try using ½ the amount of dishwashing detergent and see if this does the trick. Add more if needed.
- Run dishwasher full, do not heat dry
- Use detergent with enzymes
- Effectiveness of natural detergents will depend on what type of water you have (i.e. hard or soft)
- Save money, make your own.
What’s your favorite kitchen cleaning tip?
Lynn Colwell and Corey Colwell-Lipson are mother and daughter and authors of Celebrate Green! Creating Eco-Savvy Holidays, Celebrations and Traditions for the Whole Family, and founders of Green Halloween®.
