Food & Sustainability
To grow a more inclusive, more sustainable and healthier future through food, we must equip ourselves with the tools to do so. Here are some simple ways you can connect with the environmental impact of your food choices, and start creating change for the better of the planet.
Choose planet over plastic
Look after our land and waterways by ditching the single-use plastics and investing in reusables, including shopping bags, produce bags, food containers and drinking vessels. Sit down and enjoy your coffee at your favourite cafe, or if you are pressed for time, make the switch to a reusable coffee cup. Bring your own container to the butcher or deli when purchasing food. If you don’t have time to enjoy your restaurant meal and need to opt for take-away, bring your own containers - there are plenty of venues listed on Trashless Takeaway that will happily oblige. Invest in or make your own reusable beeswax wraps to replace cling-wrap at home. If you only make one change in your food choices, make it a commitment to reduce single-use plastic as much as you possibly can.
Rescue your groceries from landfill
There is so much perfectly edible food being sent to landfill from supermarkets every day. Things such as mislabeling, over ordering, and lack of demand on the day, all contribute to staggeringly large quantities of food being thrown out each and every day in Melbourne.
To play a part in curbing this issue, stock up your fridge with fruit and vegetables from The Inconvenience Store. Their Volunteer Drivers go around Melbourne visiting select businesses and collecting unwanted food, which is then displayed in the form of a mini "supermarket" in a space at the back of the Lentil As Anything in Thornbury.
All of the products stocked on their shelves, fruit, vegetables, bread, and dry goods would otherwise have ended up in the bin due to slight imperfections. Instead, this food is going to people otherwise unable to afford it, and/or people wishing to do their shopping and tackle environmental problems all in one.
Reimagine food waste
Avoid unnecessary food waste by seeing the second life in your kitchen scraps - they make great preserves or pesto. Or, find someone to collect your food waste and transform it into thriving compost through ShareWaste. Need some tips? Check out our go-to people for advice on reimagining food waste - Lauren and Oberon Carter.