Smart Shopping

Up to 60% of rubbish is various types of packaging made from plastic, cans, cardboard, paper and glass. Some of this packaging can be reduced by looking carefully at the way we buy these products and by becoming a ‘smart shopper’.

• Making a weekly meal planner and shopping list can help you make better choices about which foods to prepare, allowing you to buy certain items in bulk or larger sizes.
• Stick to items on your shopping list as this will prevent the purchasing of unnecessary items, saving time and money. Allow plenty of time to make good decisions and try to avoid busy times.
• Try to avoid putting fruit and vegetables in individual plastic bags at the supermarket. It will help the checkout staff if items are grouped together.
• Try to avoid purchasing individually wrapped items, e.g. snack bars, crisps and single serving ready-made meals.
• Take your own reusable shopping bags or use bags for life. Try to avoid the free thin plastic bags supermarkets supply. Most plastic bags can be recycled although they use a lot of resources to be produced or recycled. Keep some in the car for when you need to pop into the store.
• Try to avoid disposable products for example barbecues, razors, plastic plates and cups, cameras.
• Using energy efficient light bulbs, rechargeable products and rechargeable batteries will reduce waste and save money.
• Purchase concentrated products where you just need to add water as these products use less packaging.
• If you shop when you are hungry it is more tempting to buy over packaged junk food and snacks for the journey home. 
• ‘Smart Shopping’ home deliveries: having your shopping delivered to your home can save you time and save on the amount of energy used which will cause less harm to our environment.
• Produce grown and brought locally is often less packaged than the same produce bought from supermarkets.Try local Farmers Markets - contact 01273 470900 for venues and dates. For ‘veg box’ delivery schemes contact Ashurst Organics, Plumpton 01273 891219 and Barcombe Nurseries, Barcombe 01273 400011
• Using a local milkman will reduce the number of plastic bottles for recycling or cartons for the dustbin.
• If you use the internet for supermarket shopping request items are not over wrapped.  
• Shop with a ‘reuse focus’ in mind. Festive events, Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Birthdays and parties are a good example where particular items are purchased as ‘one off’ items. Shops entice us to purchase products which are disposable or have a very short life. Look carefully at the products, for example, compare disposable party cups and plates with washable coloured beakers and plates, that can be kept for future years. This approach can be applied when you are out shopping at any time. 
• Shop with a ‘recycle focus’ in mind. Recycling symbols: there are a variety of these printed on packaging which can be very confusing. The best way to check if certain packaging can be recycled is to check with your local council which items they collect for recycling, this may not include all recycling symbol types.
• We collect and recycle plastic bottles, plastic bags, cans, glass bottles and jars, paper, cardboard, textiles and small items of scrap metal.
• Closing the Loop - As well as purchasing products with recyclable packaging it is also important to purchase products made from recycled materials. This is called ‘closing the loop’ and helps to keep the recycling markets buoyant. Common items made from recycled materials are stationery, kitchen towels, tissues, toilet rolls and bin bags – check the labelling for details.
• More information on joining Box It kerbside recycling collection scheme and recycling centres.

Producing waste helps towards the creation of climate change. This is where carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases affect our weather patterns causing flooding and rising temperatures.