5 Items in Every Eco Friendly Kitchen
Ready to incrementally create an eco-friendly kitchen?
While minimalists boast what they’ve discarded + zero-wasters enjoy repurposing, sustainable minimalists covet only a few eco-friendly items which (of course!) are designed to last.
Here are my 5 essential items found in every eco-friendly kitchen.
5 items in every eco-friendly kitchen
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#1. Cloth Napkins & Un-paper Towels
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Why cloth? I’ll give you three reasons:
1. Cloth gets the job done better. Cotton is infinitely more absorbent than paper.
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2. Cloth is cheaper. If you repurpose old clothes into rags, rags are FREE (as opposed to a $1.63 “huge” roll of Bounty paper towels).
When it comes to cloth napkins, the math gets interesting. These cloth napkins cost $18.19 for a set of 12 ($1.51 each), and they’ll last for years. These paper napkins, by contrast, cost .01 each, or $5.47 for 400. In my house, 400 disposable napkins would last 6 weeks.
How long will it take until cloth napkins to be the smarter financial choice? According to the costs outlined above, paper napkins will be cheaper until exactly 20 weeks. At 21 weeks onward, cloth napkins are infinitely cheaper.
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If I purchased paper napkins for an entire year, I’d spend $47.40 on a single-use item destined for the trash can.
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I know what you’re thinking: The costs associated with maintaining those cloth napkins – the running of the washing machine, the purchasing of additional detergent and water – will quickly eat up any perceived savings.
The Ocean Conservancy did the math and found that cloth still comes out on top:
“Given current prices, if you bought the cloth napkins brand new, five year’s worth of eco-friendly cloth napkins for a family of four could cost you anywhere from $20 to $108.00. If you bought disposable paper napkins for a family of four for five years, however, it could cost you anywhere from $322.64 to $2,635.60 depending on the type of napkins you buy and whether you buy them in bulk or one roll at a time.”
So if you’re looking to save money, buy cloth napkins, then do a single, full load of napkins and unpaper towels, wash in cold water and line dry.
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3. Cloth is absolutely, definitely environmentally friendly. (Reusables always are!) If you choose cloth, remember that cotton is a water and pesticide-intensive crop, so consider purchasing organic cotton.
THE TAKEAWAY: Cloth napkins don’t just add a bit of class; they offer up a huge serving of sustainability in your eco-friendly kitchen, too.
#2. Glass Tupperware
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There are many reasons to give plastic the side-eye; maybe you’ve heard a few:
Plastic is terrible for the environment. Plastic isn’t durable long-term.
When it comes to food storage, plastic is unsafe.
That’s right: Research abounds with regard to the dangers of storing food in plastic. Chemicals from plastic containers migrate from the plastic and into your food, especially if the container is heated in the microwave or dishwasher.
Gross, right?
Glass is therefore the more prudent option when it comes to food storage because glass:
– Repels odor and residual flavors.
– Is nonporous, which means it’s cleaner than plastic.
– Is attractive and can therefore travel straight from refrigerator to dinner table, perhaps with a stop in the microwave, too.
A few years ago I found myself sick of mismatched lids and stained, smelly plastic tupperware. I worried about the health issues associated with letting plastic touch my family’s food. So I switched to glass.
My only regret is that I didn’t switch sooner.
I purchased this Pyrex set because I liked the variety of container sizes. I was also gifted this set from Crate & Barrel. I’ve had these two sets for 3 years and counting and I haven’t chipped or broken one yet. But if I ever do, I can do so guilt-free: 80% of all glass can be recycled.
I’ve also purchased these mini containers so I can prepare Ani’s school lunches in bulk. I also have a small set of flat, rectangular ones for my husband’s lunches.
These days everyone packs their lunch in glass instead of plastic.
Once you start replacing plastic with glass, you’ll be amazed at all the places plastic rears its ugly head: Your salad spinner. Ziploc bags. Your colander, perhaps.
Don’t get overwhelmed; instead, take the first step by tackling just one plastic item at a time. Start with Tupperware.
THE TAKEAWAY: When it comes to food storage, plastic containers just aren’t safe. Go glass in your eco-friendly kitchen.
#3. French Press
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Coffee aficionados swear by their French Presses, and here’s why: coffee tastes better when brewed in a French Press because the oils and flavors of the coffee are allowed to enter the water without interference.
Those interested in sustainability, too, happily brew their cup of Joe in a French Press. Why?
French Presses don’t require a disposable filter.
The French Press isn’t just for coffee connoisseurs. It’s for sustainable minimalists, too.
A recent study from Acorns Money Matters determined that the average American spends $1100 per year on coffee brewed outside the home. I used to be one of them.
These days, I buy whole-bean coffee from Whole Foods at $11.99 per pound. A pound lasts me about two weeks, which means that, over the course of one year, I spend $312 per year on coffee.
Add in the amount I spend on Half & Half (I don’t drink with sugar) and I spend approximately $468 per year on coffee using my French Press.
That’s $632 less than the average American spends.
Even better, I’m brewing waste (and guilt!) free. There’s no disposable coffee filter to trash. There’s no paper mug, either.
(In case you were wondering, those Starbucks coffee cups can’t be recycled. While the exterior is recyclable paper, there’s a thin layer of plastic inside, thus negating recycling potential. And those Styrofoam Dunkin Donuts cups? Foamed polystyrene [a.k.a. Styrofoam] can never, ever be recycled.)
THE TAKEAWAY: A French Press is the only zero-waste coffee solution.
#4. Compost Bin
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It’s as simple as this: Eco-friendly kitchens always compost.
That’s because food scraps thrown in the trash can are carted off to the landfill. Oxygen is in short supply deep in those pits, so our food releases methane (a greenhouse gas) as it decomposes.
What makes this sad truth even more depressing? It’s entirely preventable.
That’s right: You can repurpose your non-meat, non-dairy scraps into nutrient-rich soil with very minimal effort.
Non-composters view composting as a mysterious, baffling hobby. Perhaps you believe composting is only for farmers. Perhaps you don’t want to get dirty. There are so many misconceptions when it comes to composting; I’m here to demystify it for you:
You can compost under your sink.
Or you can compost on your fire escape.
You can compost in your backyard.
You can compost with very little space, too.
Turn your container’s contents once a month; add a little water to keep it moist. Then step back and watch your trash transform itself.
That’s all you have to do.
Don’t want the soil your compost bin provides? Any gardener will happily take it off your hands, as will farmers, garden clubs and virtually anyone with a yard.
Of course I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that – when it comes to food waste – the best practice is to prevent it in the first place. (Buy only what you need at the supermarket. Create an Eat-Me Box for your fridge.)
THE TAKEAWAY: Composting. Is. Simple. Maybe this is the year you start. Find everything all the resources you need to get started here.
#5. Beeswax Wraps
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There are so many things wrong with plastic wrap. It’s:
-Environmentally disastrous
-Annoying (especially when it gets all tangled up on itself)
-Expensive
-Wasteful
There’s a simple solution to the plastic wrap problem, and it just so happens to be an easy, DIY project: make your own beeswax wrap!
An eco-friendly kitchen has beeswax wraps in all different sizes. That’s because beeswax is all-natural, non-toxic, inexpensive and – when melted and applied to cotton fabric – mimics plastic wrap. The wax renders cotton unbreathable + sticks nicely to any container. Beeswax is also antibacterial and water repellant, making it an excellent choice when it comes to food storage.
If you’re interested in making your own, I’ve included step-by-step directions with photos here.
If you’d like to make the switch to beeswax wrap and are willing to pay a bit more, you can purchase sheets from a third-party seller.
THE TAKEAWAY: Plastic + Food = Sad Face.
