Ways to Reduce Waste At Home

By Yasunari Ramon Suarez Taguchi

It’s common knowledge by now that the many little decisions we make at home affects the environment. This emphasizes on the importance of reducing waste at home. Here are some ways that households can do just that:

Do away with disposables. As convenient as things like plastic bags and disposable cutlery/utensils are, these items generate a lot of waste. As such, one of the most straightforward ways to reduce waste at home would be to do away with disposables as much as possible.

When ordering takeout for dinner at home, for example, inform food couriers/restaurants that you don’t need plastic spoons, forks and straws. Also, make it a habit to bring reusable shopping bags when going out for groceries, and opt to bring your own drinking containers, as opposed to regularly using items like disposable water bottles or beverage/drink cups.

Opting to use washable microfiber cloths instead of kitchen napkins or single-use wipes is another good way to reduce waste at home, along with opting to use other “washable alternatives” for traditionally one-time-useonly items like baking sheets (there are washable siliconebased alternatives) and disposable snack bags (these have washable alternatives too).

Go for bulk instead of single-serve. While using single-serve packaged products like coffee sachets, condiment packets and litro pack juices are convenient, the used packaging of these items tend to produce a lot of waste. When stocking up supplies for the home, going for a bulk approach instead of single-serve can help to reduce the accumulation of waste.

The going-for-bulk approach can be implemented in non-stocking up situations too, like opting not to have single-serve items such as condiment packs included in takeout orders, since you can enjoy orders with condiments you already have on-hand at home.

In addition to saying no to single-serve packaged products, opting for products that use the least amount of packaging when stocking up can also help reduce the buildup of waste.

As small as the abovementioned waste reduction ways may sound, following them through at home does more than help reduce waste – they instill habits and values that put waste reduction first over wasteful conveniences.