! "#$$%&%'!()$!*++,!-)+..&%'! /0.$#&$%1$! ! "#$%!&#'()*+!,#$-.+/!()-!0/(1!1$!! 2+$3"#*/)-45!6$$7*)'! 89/!:);$#%(1*$)!19/!6$)<.%/#!0.<1!=)$>! ! Summary If you are among a growing number of consumers in today’s world, you care about issues such as the environment, human rights, and sustainability. Yet it is easy to be confused or even overwhelmed when making socially and environmentally responsible purchasing decisions, especially when it comes to what you eat and where you buy your food. This paper aims to clear up the murkiness related to sustainable food purchasing practices bt taking you through each step Strategic Sustainability of the food shopping process in order to help you understand how to Consulting make practical, eco-friendly, and socially just shopping decisions— from the plastic versus paper bag debate to what kind of organic 888 Station Street produce and meat you should buy, right up to online grocery Herndon, VA 20170 shopping tips and eco-friendly cooking solutions. 1.202.470.3248 Being a “green” consumer doesn’t mean just buying organic foods, www.sustainabilityconsulting.com but it includes looking at the ecological impacts of the entire shopping experience. After reading this paper, you will have an understanding of the following areas: what shopping bags to use, how to consume sustainably and how to green your cooking. The paper concludes with an overview of supermarkets’ sustainability profiles. Part I: *&#9(!+%!()$!"#+1$#@! A&9(B!:#&%'!@+?#! C$?94>5$!:4'D!4%,! E?9(!-4@!F+!(+!84.$#! ;FG!8549(&1 According to Worldwatch Institute, 430,000 They are made from fossil fuel. “Californians gallons of oil are required to create 1 million Against Waste” estimates that 12 million barrels of plastic bags. The Marine Conservation Society in oil are used annually to produce the plastic bags the United Kingdom estimates that it takes 450 to used in the USA alone. 1000 years for plastic bags to biodegrade. Plastic They are difficult to recycle. The New England never breaks down completely within marine EPA says, “Research from 2000 shows 20 percent environments; these plastic bags break down into of paper bags were recycled, while one percent of ‘dust’, which includes biotoxins like plastic bags were recycled.” Resuablebags.com in polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) that accumulate the "Top Facts Section" of their website estimates and can be ingested by marine life, which is that “8 billion pounds of plastic bags, wraps and harmful for the entire food chain.? sacks enter the waste stream every year in the US @ alone.” /%2&#+%3$%(45!63.41(!+7!8549(&1!:4'9! *;<=9!;>+?(!8549(&1!"#+1$#@!:4'9! They are not biodegradable. Reusablebags.com Is reusing plastic grocery bags the answer? state in their "Top Facts - Environmental Impact" section that, "Plastic bags don’t biodegrade, they • No. Although some people reuse their bags for photodegrade—breaking down into smaller and cleaning up dog waste and as trashcan liners, smaller toxic bits contaminating soil and the majority of people do not. waterways and entering the food web when • When using the bag a second time, it is animals accidentally ingest." considered a “free bag.” But this is not the 2 case. You are paying for the bag—it is just addition to plastic lumber. Plastic bags with hidden in other costs and impacts to the recycled content are usually more green or gray environment. than those without recycled plastic content.6 • Disposable bags can cost cities up to 17 cents per bag for disposal, which impacts you, the Recycled Plastic Bags: A Fashion taxpayer.A Statement Recycled plastic bags can be made into fashion Is recycling plastic bags the answer? • statements: wallets, purses, and more. Here are • No. Plastic grocery bags are rarely recycled. some links to pique your interest on other uses Currently, less than 5% of plastic bags are for plastic bags. recycled. For information on how to recycle • Wallets: plastic bags properly, please see the box titled http://thevibe.socialvibe.com/index.php/200 “How to Recycle Plastic Bags in 5 steps.” 9/02/06/wallets-made-from-recyled-plastic- • Some argue that plastic recycling is not an bags/ efficient use of our precious energy resources. • General Plastic Bag Crafts—from raincoats • The focus on recycling encourages over- to dresses to plastic bag yarn: consumption to some degree. It allows http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2007/08/p consumers to think that they can throw away lastic_bag_crafts.html. goods because they are recyclable.B • Instructions on Making Plastic Bag Yarn: ! http://www.myrecycledbags.com/2007/02/17 What products are made from recycled /instructions-for-cutting-plastic-bags- creating- plastic bags? recycled-plastic-yarn/. • The majority of recycled plastic bags are Is using a paper grocery bag the answer? turned into composite lumber, which is generally comprised of two equal substances: • No. The best choice is to always use a sawdust and plastic bags. reusable bag. During manufacturing, both • Lumber manufactured from sawdust and paper and plastic bags emit greenhouse gases plastic bags is used for a variety of items such that contribute to global climate change, in as wooden structures like doorframes, window addition to creating water pollution and using frames, and outdoor decks. raw materials and energy. • Recycled plastic bags are also used to make • Each high quality reusable bag has the ability post-consumer resin. This resin is used in the to eliminate hundreds to thousands of plastic production of new plastic bags, crates, pipes, bags over the course of its lifetime. and containers.C • Although most people are aware that paper • To recycle the plastic bags, they are shredded bags are recyclable, only about 20% of them 7 into pellets that can be used for new bags in are actually recycled. 3 What kind of reusable bag should I use? instead is the way to go. From an energy standpoint, according an Australian study, canvas • There are many sources for reusable bag bags are 14 times better than plastic bags and 39 materials like organic cotton, hemp and times better than paper bags, assuming that canvas polypropylene, all made in the United States. bags get a good workout and are used 500 times ! • “A reusable grocery bag made from recycled during their life cycle.10 plastic is not necessarily better than using a reusable bag made from virgin plastic. For instance, the recycling process typically H+I!(+!C$1@15$!8549(&1!:4'9!&%!J!-($.9! involves transportation of the discarded goods from the U.S. to Asia where environmental !" Find out if your local curbside recycling regulations aren’t as stringent. The raw program will accept plastic grocery bags. materials are reprocessed to make the new material, which is shipped back to the U. S. for #" Drop off plastic grocery bags Type 2 and assembly and transport to a retailer. This entire Type 4 at your local grocery store if you are unable to recycle them via your curbside journey uses petroleum resources and creates program. Many grocery stores accept plastic 8 harmful emissions.” bags and have recycling bins inside the store. • To find recycling centers for plastic bags How can I remember to bring bags to the near your area, such as supermarkets, go to http://earth911.com/ and type in “plastic store? bags” in the “Find Recycling Centers for” search box and enter your city. • Always start your grocery list with “Bring Bags.” $" • Keep a collapsible bag in your purse or Do not recycle any plastic bags that are dark in color or plastic bags with drawstrings. briefcase for those emergency runs to the Plastic food packaging and plastic food wrap stores. (Saran wrap) are also non-recyclable • Keep your bags in your car trunk. ! Paper or Plastic: The Verdict %" Prior to recycling, clean and dry bags thoroughly, and make sure they are empty of Both paper and plastic bags require lots and lots of any debris. This is important, since foreign resources and energy, and proper recycling objects will contaminate the plastic as it is requires diligence from both the consumer and the being recycled.! municipal waste collector or private recycling company. A lot of variables contribute to low &" Check with your county department of recycling rates.9 public works to find out about local curbside recycling programs and community drop-off centers, or look under "Recycling" in the Ultimately, neither paper nor plastic bags are Yellow Pages the best choice; choosing reusable canvas bags 4 Part II: The Organic Shopping Experience: The Low-Down on Organic When you have the option, opt for organic. National Organic Program (NOP) assure Organic products are good for you and good for consumers that the organic agricultural products the planet. You can be a steward to the they purchase are produced, processed, and environment by purchasing organic food, for certified to consistent national organic standards. organic methods eliminate the use of persistent The requirements of the NOP labeling apply to pesticides, fungicides, herbicides and artificial raw, fresh products and processed products that fertilizers, in addition to supporting “biodiversity, contain organic agricultural ingredients. water quality and energy conservation.”11 Agricultural products that are sold, labeled, or ! represented as organic must be produced and K%&($,!-(4($9!G$.4#(3$%(!+7!;'#&1?5(?#$B! processed in accordance with the NOP standards. Except for operations whose gross income from L)4(!()$!M+%9?3$#!F$$,9!(+!N%+I!;>+?(! organic sales totals $5,000 or less, farm and O#'4%&1!8#+,?1(9! processing operations that grow and process ! organic agricultural products must be certified by Quoted from the United States Department of USDA-accredited certifying agents. Labeling Agriculture’s background on what constitutes requirements are based on the percentage of organic products, available at organic ingredients in a product.” http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDoc Name=STELDEV3004446&acct=nopgeninfo: Agricultural Products Labeled “100 percent ! organic” and “organic” “The Organic Foods Production Act and the ! “Products labeled as “100 percent organic” must 5 contain (excluding water and salt) only organically percentage of organic content and the certifying produced ingredients and processing!aids.