Good morning and Happy Thursday! I hope you guys are doing well so far today! I’m excited to be teaming up with Whole Foods Market on today’s blog post and chat about simple things we can all do to “green our routines” and be a little more environmentally-friendly.
Below you will find six simple ways to green your routine and there’s also a great giveaway at the bottom of this blog post that I think my fellow Whole Foods Market lovers will enjoy!
Six Simple Ways To Green Your Routine at Whole Foods
- Purchase Frozen Fish and Buy Sustainable Catch
As someone who loves almost any kind of seafood and prepares fish for dinner at least once a week, purchasing frozen and sustainably-caught seafood is a big one for me! While fresh seafood must often travel long distances by air, frozen seafood can make its way to retailers via a more energy-efficient mode of transportation. An added bonus is that modern flash-freezing means consumers still get high-quality seafood, often for less money than fresh seafood.
Additionally when purchasing wild-caught seafood, select options that are certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) or rated “Green” or “Yellow” by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program and the Safina Center to ensure that your choice is sustainable.
- Bring Your Own Bags
I have a feeling a lot of you already do this (at least I hope you do!), but bringing your own reusable grocery bags to the store with you is such a simple way be a little more environmentally friendly. Plus, many Whole Foods Market locations offer discounts for customers who bring their own bags into the store! Win, win.
Fun fact: It’s estimated that Whole Foods has kept more than 150 million plastic bags out of landfills since eliminating plastic grocery bags from their stores in 2008.
- Choose Greener Cleaners
I started to pay more attention to the type of cleaners we use at home when I was pregnant and am definitely more cognizant of our cleaning supplies now that we have a baby at home. Whole Foods Market’s Eco-Scale Rating System mandates full ingredient disclosure on all household cleaning products (<— something that is not require by US law) in an effort to help shoppers identify a product’s environmental impact though a color-coded rating.
The orange rating is the minimum rating, noting that products with an orange rating do not have ingredients with significant environmental or safety concerns (such as phosphates or chlorine). Yellow-rated products meet even higher standards and green-labeled products are the top tier!
- Select In-Season Produce
This is another tip that is both great for flavor and for saving energy and resources! By shopping in season, you’re more likely to save money and enjoy deliciously flavorful produce while also purchasing food that has been harvested using less energy and resources during a time when it grows naturally.
- Shop In Bulk
Oooh the bulk foods section! I don’t know what it is about this section of Whole Foods, but I’m always drawn to it first. I love trying new foods and appreciate the way the bulk bins allow me to shop for the exact amount I want to use. They’re a great way to save money (I love buying chia seeds, nuts and nutritional yeast in bulk) and also cut down on materials and waste.
- Vote With Your Dollars
I cannot remember where I first heard this tidbit of advice, but it’s something I think about regularly when I am shopping. Whatever you purchase at the grocery store is essentially a “vote” telling brands that you like what they’re doing and want more of it. I would obviously prefer to see store shelves packed with food that is nutritious and produced with sustainability in mind and feel that by gravitating toward this type of food when I shop, I play a very small part in keeping the wheel running and encouraging the production of more responsibly-produced food.
Whole Foods Market Gift Card Giveaway
And now for that giveaway I promised you at the beginning of this post! One PBF reader will win a $100 gift card to Whole Foods Market. Sweet, right!?
To enter this giveaway, please leave a comment on this blog post telling me one thing you do on a regular basis to “green your routine” or tell me one of your favorite things to buy at Whole Foods.
I will randomly select a winner tomorrow morning.
Good luck!!
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I love the bulk bins! My most purchased items are whole wheat flour, rice, and nuts.a
To “green our routines” my family shops local, brings our own bags and/or reuses the bags we brought back home as trash bags and we walk or bike to our local stores, including Whole Foods (only about 12 minutes walk!)
I recycle and compost as much as possible.
We have a bag of bags that we use every week! We love Whole Foods, but please let them know that they need to put one closer to us. ?
I love all of their lunch selections that I’ve tried, but one of my favorite things that they sell is their coconut yogurt! It’s the best I’ve tried so far, and I can only get it at Whole Foods. ❤️
I use my refillable water bottle instead of bottled water.
I use Ms Meyers products for everything! They smell amazing! We also bring our lunch to work – oh the $$ we have saved!
I recycle at home and at the cafe I work at
We always bring our reusable bags & I love finding local producers at neighborhood WFMarket! In Colorado, my fav was Justin’s Almond Butter & now in Atlanta we buy Locally made Simple Almond!
Reusable grocery bags every time!
In season produce is the way to go! You can taste the difference.
Love Whole Foods!
Recycle bottles, paper, and plastic at home!
We bring reusable bags and Iblive shopping the bulk section. We live in Ocala and stop by Whole Foods when we are in Orlando. My favorite things to buy are frozen veggie burgers. Whole Foods carries a fantastic selection!
We always bring our own bags!! Great post!
I walk to WF and use reusable bags.
We walk places as much as possible, use reusable bags and buy fresh! Thanks for the giveaway!
My toddler and I love to recycle and we always use reusable bags at the supermarket!!!
We use reusable bags and since having my baby I have been making my own green cleaners!
Whole foods what do I not love there? Although I am usually drawn to the bulk foods.
I bring my own bags every time!
Great ideas! I started bringing my son to school on my bike. It’s fun for both of us 🙂
I always bring my bags when shopping!
I use reusable bags and buy in bulk!
I love whole foods!!! My favorite is their Kombucha!! We always try to bring our reusable grocery bags!
I save all of my plastic grocery bags to use as trash bags!
We love the bulk section of Whole Foods, too. And we always use our own tote bags.
Recycling, reusable bags, and only buying what we need. The closest Whole Foods is over an hour from us, but Publix also lets you only purchase the amount of meat/produce/baked goods that you need.
Oh wow, what an AWESOME giveaway! I always bring reusable bags with me to the grocery store. After living in Maryland where they charge you for a plastic bag, the habit of bringing my own bag has always stuck with me. My trunk is LOADED with reusable bags haha
I shop seasonally for produce. It tastes the best in season anyways!
I love to buy cheese at Whole Foods, but I tend to go crazy in the cheese department and buy way too many varieties!
A brand new Whole Foods opened just a couple blocks away from my house, so I’m super lucky that we get to walk to the grocery store! We keep reusable bags in our stroller too, because most of our walks end up with a stop into Whole Foods. 🙂
I love the freshly ground almond butter. There are also certain teas I like that I can only find at Whole Foods.
I love the bulk bins and using reusable bags as well! Nutritional yeast is my favorite bulk bin purchase. Thanks for the reminder that the little things we all do makes a big difference.
I always try to bring reusable bags, I also like to buy veggies directly from the farm when in season. I love knowing where my food comes from which is why I love Whole Foods, so many products are labeled as local and how far away they traveled from.
I always bring my own bags to the grocery store, and since moving to CA last week, now I’m recycling everything! Quite a change from tossing everything in the same garbage can, but it feels great.
I always bring my own bags!
Reusable bags are a MUST. I bring then not just to Whole Foods but to Trader Joe’s, Ralphs, pretty much everywhere I shop for groceries! I also try to buy more plant-based foods because they’re cheaper and reduce a lot of carbon footprint!
Reusable bags are habit. I also try to walk as many places as possible, so if I’m in a shopping plaza, I’ll park once and walk to multiple stores. Easier to do in nice weather!
What a great giveaway!! I green my routine by bringing my own bags, and I make every effort to buy things in containers that can be recycled!
I always use my reusable bags and love the bulk bin at whole foods!
Our green ways of living include re-usable bags and purchasing fruit while it’s in season, then freezing for later use!
currently hanging clothes outside on the line and during the winter months of WI most clothes are still hung up in the laundry room. Less use of the dryer is not only good on the usage side but also reflective on the gas bill!!
I use all green household cleaners!
I always buy in-season fruit! And my favorite thing to buy at whole foods is Justin’s almond butter 🙂 or I love the cookie area, their cookies are wonderful!
What an awesome giveaway! I like to use glass containers as often as possible over paper or plastic 🙂
I love shopping in the bulk section. One of my favorite things to buy at Whole foods is their bakery breads and their vegan cookies. I am bfing an allergy kid and so I love that they have fresh cookies I can eat and their breads do not have dairy or egg in them!
To green my routine I try to get spinach and/or kale in the morning with green smoothies! There is no way I would eat as many leafy greens during the day if I didn’t drink them in the morning! I would love to try buying my greens at Whole Foods!
I always take my reusable bags! I have skipped going to the store before when I realized I didn’t have them in my car. I hate plastic bags! 🙂
I have started using all green house cleaners! Before, I always thought they were too expensive but after looking into it, they are close in price! They are also better for the environment and for us!
The hot bar is probably my favorite thing, ha!
I carry a water bottle with me everywhere so I never need to buy plastic water bottles when I’m out and about!
Favorite thing(s) to get at Whole Foods: gingerbread cake and chocolate mousse and cake parfait cups. I’d top the chocolate mousse and cake parfait with gingerbread cake- soooo good! They don’t sell either item at my closest whole foods so it’s a treat whenever I go to one that does.