5 Simple Steps to a More Sustainable Kitchen

If you’re the type that’s always on the lookout for ways to ensure that you are living a more eco-friendly lifestyle you won’t be surprised to find that living in a more eco-conscious way goes hand and hand with having a sustainable kitchen.

Give composting a whirl

Instead of shipping off all your leftover food and garbage disposal scraps to the landfill, you can turn it into compost instead. Compost is vital a source of rich ingredients that can be used for planting gardens.

First you’ll need a compost bin or bucket for food scraps. Then you’ll need to layer the bin with newspaper to keep down odors and flies. Adding a mixture of leaves or soil to the top of the newest scraps also helps to cut down on odors. Not everything you waste can be thrown into the compost bin so you’ll want to stay away from things like meats and fish because they have a habit of attracting rodents and scavengers.

Grow your own garden fresh produce

Try growing your own produce instead of spending money on fruits and vegetables that get more and more expensive with each trip to the grocery store. This is also the picture-perfect opportunity to make use of any kitchen scrap compost you’ve made.

You can take advantage of growing your own fruits, herbs and vegetables even if you live in a small apartment with little room outside, container or raised bed gardening may be a more feasible alternative to planting a traditional garden. Jar, buckets and planting pots can be used to grow garden fresh fruits, vegetables and herds on small balconies or in large open window spaces.

Try reusing some food packaging items

Most everything you buy at the grocery store comes with some type of packaging. Many items come double packaged in plastic bags wrapped in cardboard boxes. That’s a lot of materials being misused. You may choose to avoid purchasing freezer bags and instead reuse the packaging from other food items. Cereal bags which are made to protect cereal from moisture and the plastic bags from bread can be reused to store items in the fridge. Bread bags however are not recommended for use in the freezer. In contrast, frozen vegetable packaging is perfect for storing other food items in the freezer; just make sure to wash the bags thoroughly before reusing them.

Eliminate the use of plastic wrap and aluminum foil

Another way you can create a more sustainable kitchen is by forgoing the use of plastic wrap or aluminum. When it comes to sustainable alternatives for storing food look into reusable silicone lids, 100 percent recycled foil and thermal food covers can be washed and reused repeatedly.

Make your own eco-conscious cleaners

From mopping the floor to scrubbing the countertops and degreasing the appliances, there is many a need for cleaning products in the kitchen. Thankfully, there are a lot of great DIY recipes online that use natural ingredients like vinegar and baking soda to concoct powerful, cost-effective cleaners that are better for the environment and devoid of harmful chemicals contained in the expensive cleaners bought at the store.

About the author – Alex is a writer, husband, father and aspiring urban fantasy novelist. When he isn’t writing for HomeDaddys or completing chores from his “honey- do” list, he’s most likely spending quality time with his wife and kids or working on his novel.