TIPS AND TRICKS, HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR CONSUMPTION ONE STEP AT A TIME

Consuming eco-responsibly means looking beyond the simple consumption of the product. It means seeing all the consequences, whether positive or negative, that will occur following consumption on the environment. Obviously, there are several ways to consume while considering the environmental impacts. The goal being to minimize the harmful effects, we will see some good consumption habits to adopt to achieve this as well as some products to avoid.

Food

At the grocery store, it can become easy to buy many products without thinking about the impacts that these consumer goods have; whether in production or transport. It may therefore be interesting to give ourselves some tips to adopt in the future to improve our food consumption:

• Make a list of the products needed to buy and postpone superficial products
• Choose local and seasonal products (strawberries and corn from Quebec in summer)
• Read and check the eco-labels on products (environmental, social or economic benefits)
• Reduce your consumption of red meat
• Avoid over-packaged foods

At home, certain means can also be used to become more eco-responsible in everyday cooking:

• Replace single-use products with reusable products (bags, straws, packaging, etc.)
• Adopt the concept of zero waste (in whole or in part, read the article "It was worth the wait" if you want to know more about this subject)
• Cook your own meals as often as possible
• Prepare snacks and lunches for work and school with reusable dishes and bags for avoid polluting with non-reusable products

Clothing

The fashion industry is the second most polluting industry in the world. Producers emit more than 1.2 billion tons of CO2 into the air each year. Obviously, some companies pollute less than others. Here are some methods to carefully select your next purchases:

• Prioritize clothing made from eco-friendly raw materials such as linen, hemp or eco-leather
• Avoid synthetic materials such as polyester or nylon
• Prioritize eco-friendly or local brands
• Exchange your clothes (use thrift store apps like Depop, Vinted or Vestiaire Collective)
• Buy your clothes in thrift stores when you can
• Use resale sites like Marketplace or Upcycli
• Our products correspond to all of the above

Lifestyle

Every day, several habits can be adopted to become more and more eco-responsible. Whether it's to go to work or to reduce the amount of waste in the house, it is possible to find good habits according to your lifestyle. In the long term, a large majority will be able to adopt these different habits and therefore make a difference:

• Prefer public transport or carpooling, when possible, for your daily trips
• Practice eco-driving and carpooling to reduce your fuel consumption
• Sort your waste (recycling and composting)
• Repair instead of throwing away
• Gradually introduce reusable hygiene products
• Reduce the time spent in the shower and water consumption in general
• Reduce electricity consumption by lowering the temperature of the rooms in the house or turning off the lights in unoccupied rooms

To avoid

As it is possible to adopt good habits, you also need to know the bad habits to adopt if you want to be more and more ecological in your daily life. Therefore, it is necessary to avoid products and goods from certain countries where environmental standards are less strict or from industries that are harmful to the environment:

• Reduce the purchase of products from the oil industry
• Reduce the consumption of foods containing palm oil and its use in the preparation of dishes
• Avoid ultra-processed foods
• Avoid clothing produced in countries where some people are exploited or have poor environmental standards such as China or Bangladesh