My Zero Waste Kitchen • Page 2 of 3 • A blog about transitioning to a zero waste kitchen.

The Frustration-Free Guide to Bulk Bin Shopping

08.06.2019 by zerowastekitchen // Leave a Comment

First, to be clear, when I talk about bulk shopping, I am not talking about buying a package of 144 rolls of toilet paper from Costco. This post is about bulk bin shopping at your local grocery store, which is truly one of the best ways to get started with a zero waste kitchen.

Why bulk bin shopping? It all goes back to zero waste packaging: if you’re not bringing trash into your house, you’re not throwing trash out of your house. But some people skip the bulk bin section at the grocery store because it’s more work than grabbing a bag of flour or oats from the store shelf. That’s why I created this frustration-free guide to bulk bin shopping–I’m going to share some tips to make it easier!

What to Buy in Bulk

Everything! Anything! Some of my favorite foods to buy in bulk are:

Nuts
Oats
Flours
Beans and lentils
Dried fruit
Rice and other grains
Oils and vinegars

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The Best Zero Waste Shampoo Bars for Every Hair Type

08.05.2019 by zerowastekitchen // Leave a Comment

The focus of this blog is the kitchen, but I wanted to occasionally write about other ways to reduce waste around the house. A post about zero waste shampoo bars seemed like a good place to start because shampoo bars are a lot of people’s entree into the whole zero waste lifestyle. I did an informal poll in a zero waste Facebook group I’m in to get everyone’s opinions on the best zero waste shampoo bars for every hair type and here they are!

Shampoo Bars for Normal Hair

If you have normal hair, you’ll have the easiest time finding a zero waste shampoo bar.

Aspen Kay Solid Shampoo Bar – This citrusy bar comes in a tin, so it’s great for travel–and a tin is zero waste packaging because it can be upcycled.

SKINNY and CO. Chemical Free Lavender Orange Shampoo Bar – One problem with some shampoo bars is that they can leave your hair weighed down with residue, but this bar removes build-up.

Ethique Pinkalicious Eco-Friendly Shampoo Bar for Normal Hair with Grapefruit & Vanilla – Ethique has a huuuuge cult following, with shampoo, lotion, and even serums in bar form. One bar equals 3 bottles of shampoo!
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What Is Zero Waste Packaging?

08.03.2019 by zerowastekitchen // Leave a Comment

Seeking out zero waste packaging is the first step to living a zero waste lifestyle. When you’re not bringing all that plastic packaging into your house in the first place, you don’t have to worry about what happens to it when you throw it away. These are the 4 main types of zero waste packaging.

No Packaging

This is the best zero waste packaging option! You can bring your own produce bags to the grocery store. Or skip the bags entirely–do you really need to put that onion or lemon you’re buying in a bag at all? Use the bulk bins at your grocery store and bring your own jars instead of using the plastic bags supplied by the store. (I usually use jars I save from food, but Weck jars are really great too because they don’t have a metal lid that can get rusty.)

If you have a local farmers market, this is a great way to go no packaging too. When I go to the farmers market, I bring a big canvas bag stuffed with BeeKeep, small reusable sandwich bags, and large produce bags. Cheese goes in the BeeKeep, pastries go in the sandwich bags (I can’t leave the farmers market without treating myself to pain au chocolat), and loaves of bread, fruits, and vegetables go in the large produce bags.
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