Since the end of last year, I've been feeling the need to reduce the amount of throwaway packaging that comes into (and out of) our home. I've revisited buying at bulk shops where you take your own containers to refill, but there's not a lot of that around here, so I do what I can. I'm hoping
The Source Bulk Foods opens in Geelong soon, I've been to one of their Melbourne shops a couple of times, and it's fantastic!
My drawer of stainless steel containers and water bottles. I also use a lot of Pyrex containers.
I'm able to fill these up at the Wholefoods Co-operative in town.
We have a confectionary shop locally that also sells a huge range of nuts, spices and healthier foods. I took a drawstring cloth bag and asked if they would fill it with roasted almonds, and they kindly obliged. They'd do it with their treats too I'm sure, but we'll try to avoid that where possible ;)
A range of food covers- beeswax wraps, and bowl covers. I've only bought 2 rolls of cling wrap in my adult life, I used it so infrequently, I figured I didn't need it. I haven't used it for years as there are plenty of alternatives.
Making your own crackers is very easy, the bought ones are so over packaged. I've been using
this recipe, mostly with a buckwheat/teff flour combination so it's GF.
I like to buy oats and flour in 5kg bags, I'll store it in the freezer to keep it fresh if there's room.
My local free range butcher (Warren & Hutch) will fill up my containers, and set aside items that they normally package in plastic for me to pick up plastic free. A local deli wouldn't let me buy cheese or deli meat in my own containers, so I'm buying waxed cheese for now, and I have bought parmesan cheese in one of my beeswax wraps, so it can be done, I just have to go further afield (Queen Victoria Market in Melbourne). I'm drawing inspiration from:
The Rogue Ginger
Gippsland Unwrapped and a great
interview here
Plastic Free July
Treading My Own Path
2 comments:
Alicia, I am really enjoying your blog, and I love your packaging solutions. I use some of these too - and I do think that not only are they better for us and our environment, they also look nicer! Where do you buy your stainless steel tins? My daughter has a stainless steel tiffin tin, and I keep pinching the top tin with the lid to store food in because it is so handy:)
Thanks Jo, I do love my stainless steel, especially to take to my ethical butcher, as they are lighter weight than the glass ones, and won't smash! Most of the ones I have are by Lunch Bots from various places (usually when they're on sale), and a few from U Konserve. Some have built in dividers, some don't. I've been collecting them since my eldest started kinder and I didn't want to buy the usual plastic containers for her. I have a good collection now, probably enough. Thanks for visiting my much neglected blog!
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