Reach your New Year’s Resolution with Less Waste!

What is your 2019 New Year’s resolution? Maybe it’s a fitness bootcamp to get stronger, or a juice detox to balance your body, a dry January to take a break from alcohol, or a 30 day yoga challenge to become more mindful. 

All of these New Year’s resolutions revolve around personal growth, which is important!

From time to time, we all need to take a step back to reflect on our past, appreciate the good things in our lives and move forward with intention.

Have you thought about creating less waste as you work toward your personal goal? This doesn’t mean you have to flip your lifestyle upside down. It also, doesn’t mean you have to become vegan or move to the forest to live off the land. You just have to start integrating sustainable habits with your personal goals!

Creating less waste isn’t about taking things away (although sometimes it is!), instead, less waste is more about living better.  Better actions, and sometimes better tools to help create less waste.  As we all start settling into our day-to-day routines of 2019, here are some great sustainable ideas to help you reduce waste this year!

Set Up a Compost Bin

In 2017 the National Zero Waste Council conducted research on household food waste in Canada, and the results were astonishing. They found that “63% of the food Canadians throw away could have been eaten. For the average Canadian household that amounts to 140 kilograms of wasted food per year – at a cost of more than $1,100 per year!”

So, as you meal prep all those healthy fruits and veggies to stick to your New Year’s resolution, toss inedible scraps into a compost bin.

p.s. Keep your compost bin in the freezer to avoid any unwanted smells!  

Wrap up your Food

Whether you’re on the go or just storing left over food at home, you must check out these beeswax wraps!

Beeswax wraps can preserve and keep your food fresh just like traditional plastics wraps, just without the waste. Since they are reusable, you won’t be throwing out plastic every time you want to save some leftovers for later.

Our CEO Susanna Carson has replaced all the plastic wrap in her house, with bowls and silicon lids, and there is no going back.   

 p.s. Did you know that you can make your own DIY Beeswax Cotton Wraps!?

Bring a Reusable Thermos

Ideally we all have time in the morning, to read a novel, listen to a podcast or watch the news while sipping on our favourite morning beverage. However, for most of us this is not our reality. As you rush out the door, pour your favourite drink into a reusable thermos, toss it in your bag and go.

p.s. When you forget your reusable mug, have you asked your favorite coffee shop if they have BPI certified compostable take out cups?

2019: Here we go!

Even if reducing your waste in 2019 is not your main focus – hopefully these tips will inspire you to just make a few small changes in your life. Remember, none of us are perfect. You don’t have to go completely zero waste tomorrow. Start with something simple that compliments your personal New Year’s resolutions.

Even though we all have different personal goals, reducing our waste is something we can all work on together.