Shopping

Green purchasing involves learning about all the ways that a product can affect the environment during the course of its life cycle, from the materials used to manufacture it, to how you use it, to what you do with it when you’re finished with it, so that you can make smart choices.

Be an Enviroshopper

• Avoid buying goods with unnecessary packaging
• Buy in the size that you can use and not waste
• Buy products that can be recycled and make sure to recycle them
• Select products with the most purposeful, least wasteful packaging
• Use cloth grocery bags or reuse your plastic or paper grocery bags

Buy Smart

Take some time to think before you buy something and maybe you will realize you don’t really need it. Maybe you can think of an alternative to buying a product, such as renting a DVD instead of buying it or sending a free e-card instead of a paper birthday card. Shopping with the environment in mind will conserve resources, prevent waste and save money.

Buy Durable Products

Instead of buying disposable products, which are wasteful, buy things that will last a long time such as rechargeable batteries and reusable plastic mugs for drinks.

Think Globally, Buy Locally

The concept of buying local is simply to buy food, goods or services that are produced, grown or raised as close to your home as possible. Choosing a product that’s harvested or made locally reduces transportation energy use and helps sustain your community’s economy. In the United States, the average grocery store’s produce travels nearly 1,500 miles between the farm where it was grown and your refrigerator.

General Produce Safety Guidelines

• All fresh produce that is peeled or cut should be refrigerated within two hours or discarded.
• Cut away bruised or damaged areas before eating.
• Hands should be washed with hot soapy water before and after handling fresh produce.
• Scrub firm produce, such as melons and cucumbers, with a clean produce brush.
• Wash all fruits and vegetables with cool tap water immediately before eating. Do not use soap or detergents.
• Wash surfaces often. Cutting boards, dishes, utensils and counter tops should be washed with hot soapy water and sanitized after coming in contact with fresh produce. Always use clean cutting boards and utensils when handling fresh produce.