When I started the dorseteco sustainable living online shop my intention was simply to encourage others to think about what they buy and which products they choose to use. To try and break some of those old habits where we continue to buy the same old green scourers (which are full of plastic) and instead we choose a natural eco friendly alternative such as a coconut scourer in its place. My little impact on the world is definitely making those closest to me think about what they buy; many of my fellow traders now choose paper bags instead of plastic, other traders bring their own mugs along to the market so as not to use yet another polystyrene cup! My friends and family often tell me what they've changed or how good they've been this week with their recycling or shopping for eco-friendly products. Yes, these are small steps but I know I’m making an impact on those around me. Just think if we all made small changes what an accumulative effect that would have.
I can’t take credit for these sustainable living hacks but I just love them, you see eco friendly hacks all the time on Instagram and they just make good sense. I’m therefore compiling my favourite hacks for you to embrace if you so wish. One thing I’ve got much better at is using products that help to waste less food and making the food I’ve got last longer, these hacks that I’ve seen online make that all the more possible and in these times of stretched wallets even more essential for us and the planet - helping to stop climate change is key to our survival.
Lemons and Limes
If you keep these in your fridge in a sealed glass jar full of water, they will last for about 3 months rather than just about a week! How fab is that?! Speaking of lemons - have you seen our eco living wooden lemon reamer made with sustainable beech wood?
(Hack courtesy of the zero waste store)
Carrots
Carrots also ruin when they are dehydrated; to bring a limp carrot back to life (yes I did say limp!) store it in water, they actually firm right back up again. When you're ready to peel, try swapping your plastic peeler for our eco living wooden vegetable peeler, made from sustainable beech wood and stainless steel.
Don't Waste Food
Don’t chuck out any old bits of wrinkled dried up garlic, simply pop them into a glass with some water and within days you’ll have garlic chives, chop the leaves into little chunks (you can use our Olive Wood chopping board for this task!) and sprinkle over your pasta or salad, yum!
(Hack from waste free planet)
The one I find the most amazing is that you can pop a whole ripe avocado straight into the freezer. Make sure you use an eco-friendly storage solution, like our Biobag compostable freezer bags, which are completely plastic-free and you can even re-use them! Or you could try our 100% compostable bio food wrap,
which is made from natural renewable plant-based materials and will degrade in your compost within 6 months. Your avocado will last between 3 – 6 months, when you want to use it simply run it under warm water, leave it in the water for 15 minutes and then use as normal. Avocados on tap whenever you want them, what's not to love?!
In order to use less water you can use rice, pasta or vegetable water to water your plants - it's full of good stuff that they’ll love and thrive on. Obviously leave it to cool down before using it but the starchy water has beneficial nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium that will help your plants to grow. Just keep a jar close to the cooker and fill it with the used water rather than tipping it straight down the sink.
(hack courtesy of cariuma planet)
Finally I'd like to share this little gem of good news; according to the Eco.Medy guys on Instagram who share information that matters, there’s now a company called Morrama who have developed the first fully recyclable and biodegradable Covid 19 test kits. The devastating effect of Covid 19 to the world’s population and its environmental impact will be felt for years to come. All that plastic PPE is already causing chaos for landfill and the Oceans. We have to get used to living with this new virus and testing is and will be part of our lives for a long time to come. To hear that biodegradable testing kits and seeded and biodegradable face masks are now becoming normal is very exciting news. Great work Morrama, keep it up, let’s hope its an affordable product for everyday use.