Earthly advice for a greener life

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Q: How can I reduce the environmental impact of my food shopping? A: Key things to think about when the ethical shopper is buying food are: - Will you eat it? - How was it grown? - How far has it travelled? - How is it packaged? First of all, if you might not eat it all then don't buy it. Approximately one third of all food purchased is thrown away, so don't fill your fridge to bursting point, buy what you can realistically eat.  The more you buy, the more the supermarkets need to buy and the less left for everyone else in the world.  Ideally your food should be organic, so there has been no impact on the environment from chemical usage during it's growth; it should have been grown in the UK, preferably locally, so 'food miles' are kept to a minumim; and finally it should be packaged in biodegradable or recyclable packing, so there is no environmental impact after it has been eaten. There is little use buying organic food that has been flown from Chile and is wrapped in a polystyrene tray and clingfilm.  Where possible get your vegetables loose and package them in paper bags which can be composted (see EcoWaste for more details on composting). I recommend using a local vegetable box scheme for your fruit and vegetables.  They will generally provide a variety of in-season locally grown produce that will meet all of the recommendations above.  During the winter you will have a reduced variety and potentially vegetables from slightly further afield, but by and large they will have minimal 'food miles'.  If there is no scheme in your area, consider using your local shops rather than the supermarket.  They not only will generally have more local produce, but they need the business, far too many localshops are being unable to compete with the supermarkets and are going out of business.  Don't forget to compost the fruit and vegetable peelings. For meat, again organically grown produce is better, not only for the environement, but also for the animals welfare and the taste of the meat.  Some of the vegetable box schemes also provide meat delivery, however, if not use your local butcher rather than the supermarket, the meat will invariably be local and a lot fresher.