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 try to be more green by walking the 20 mins from the train to my office every morning and afternoon!
I used to live next door to a Whole Foods and I LOVED their wine shop and the amazing cheeses they have in the store! Such great quality.
I bring my bags and containers for bulk!
I LOVE Whole Foods fresh honey roasted peanut butter. It’s amazing!
We live in the city but still found ourselves driving to the grocery store or other places. Recently we have been walking wherever we need to go (granted the nice weather is helping). I love to buy my seafood and produce at Whole Foods! And get samples from the cheese bar 🙂
I bring my own bags to the store. Not only helps the environment but it’s so much easier to carry your groceries in!
Yogurt covered raisins from the bulk bin!!
Recycling is huge in our family
I always save glass jars with lids, get a tare weight of the jar and lid, then fill it up at the bulk section! Zero waste and it looks so cute when stored in the pantry!
I try to bring my own bag for veggies or just dont use one and wash a little extra at home
I always try to bring my reusable bags, and my favorite recent Whole Foods item is Chinook Sunflower Seeds! They have so many delicious flavors (Dill Pickle is amazeee!) and I bring a bag of them with me when I hike!
My husband and I try to commute together as much as possible. If everyone paired up for their ride to work, there would be less pollution and less traffic! Also, we love the honey peanut butter in the bulk food section. It’s a sweet treat on toast or fruit.
I try to recycle as much as I can and when it’s warmer, walk to do my errands.
I try and buy from the local produce section of my Whole Foods. I love their recently added green juice selection!
Love Whole Foods!! I usually bring my own bags and try to buy seasonal!
We ALWAYS bring our own bags! 🙂
I was inspired by this post to start remembering to bring my reusable bags to the store!
I love buying Halo Top ice cream & Purely Elizabeth granola at WF. I’ll make special trips there just to see if the birthday cake flavor is in stock 😉
We use cloth diapers on my son. Saves the environment and money- win/win!
We reuse our plastic bags around the house and we usually bring our own bags to the store. Gotta make a drive to shop at Whole Foods but worth it!
Love whole foods! Agree using reusable bags is the way to go – I always keep them in my car.
Love getting the food from the hot bar at Whole Foods. I was on a travel assignment staying in a hotel for 3 months with just a microwave in my room. So the hot bar was an option I used to get healthier meal options.?
I walk to work everyday and use Norwex products to clean my house!
I use reusable bags, recycle, and try to use green cleaning products!
I love the trail mixes and granola from Whole Foods!!
I walk to the grocery store and generally try to walk instead of drive everywhere I go. I’m lucky that I live walking distance from a Whole Foods and live in a very walkable city 🙂
I try to do all of those things, but I often forget my own bags! My favorite thing to buy at whole foods is their prepared chicken salad.
i love buying hummus because they have so many options plus Whole Foods has the prettiest flowerrs 🙂 I always bring a re-usable bag to go green and they donate to a local charity when you do!
I must admit that I need to make an effort to be more green! But we do walk to the grocery store every chance we get so that is a start right? 🙂 My favorite thing to buy at whole foods is Rudis bread! I am seriously addicted! I actually also like some of their make up they have in store!
I try to bring reusable bags with me to the store. I really like Whole Foods’ salad bar!
I keep my reusable bags in the car and use them anytime we go shopping!
I always bring reusable bags!
We’ve been focusing on reusable containers in our house – no more plastic water bottles for us!
I love pretty much anything from Whole Foods, but especially their vitamins and probiotics. Oh, and of course their natural peanut butter… YUM!
WF fruit tarts are the staple when my girlfriends get together. 🙂 I always keep bags in my car so I use them when I shop!
What a great giveaway! Thank you!
My husband and I love the fresh meat counter at WF! And I agree – reusable bags is the way to go!
We recycle all the time. It bothers me when some of our family & friends don’t!! We also use reusable baggies and always use nalgene bottles instead of water bottles.
I would love this gift card! We finally had a Whole Foods Market open up in my town! I always keep in my car reusable grocery bags and I have been meaning to switch my house cleaners to more green products.
I bring my bags and I am loving the vitamins I now take on the regular while nursing!
I buy in bulk and try to make the best choices possible when it comes to buying meat and seafood!
I’m a sucker for any and all produce on sale (in season ) at WFM. Gorgeous colors !!
Grocery bags= dog poop bags!
I have a composter in my back yard, two rain barrels, and I make most of my household cleaners using things like white vinegar and baking soda. We do as much as we can to reduce the amount of garbage we send to the landfill and recycle 90% of our waste.
Always bring my own bags!
One of my favorite things to get a Whole Foods is the almond and peanut butter that you ground in store!
I always bring my own reusable tote bags and buy in season as much as possible 🙂
My Whole Foods has an especially awesome section of fresh wild mushrooms. I love being able to buy them there, but that they come from local farmers. Saute those puppies up with some balsamic vinegar and POW! Delicious 🙂
Whole Foods is a great place to find beautiful meats. Brought home in a sustainable shopping bag, of course.
We always bring our reusable grocery bag with us! It’s a bigger one and we try to fill it up as much as we can first before reaching for any plastic bags.
I like to buy things in bulk to make my own trail mix. That way, I get only the ingredients I actually like, and I’m not left with a big plastic tub when I’ve (not so slowly) eaten my way through the mix.
I am obsessed with the salad bar and their cheese selection!
My husband and I recently “greened” our routine by buying lunchboxes! We were using plastic bags for awhile and we realized something so simple really cut back on waste!