Last week, for Waste Reduction Week, I went to Planet Pantry to chat with the owners about how to reduce waste at home. Plane Pantry, located at 25 Forks Market Road #145 in Winnipeg is a low-waste shop that offers its customers sustainable products that come in minimal packaging with no plastic. Any packaging you do see can either be composted, recycled, reused, repurposed or refilled. They also are a refillery and encourage BYOC (bring your own containers) to fill up on all their liquid bulk items. Planet Pantry tries its best to offer products that stay within Canadian borders and that everything is ethically sourced and produced.
I toured the store and learned about 5 ways/products that would help reduce waste at home. Reducing your waste may seem daunting and like a lot of work, but the best thing to do is just to start somewhere. Even making small changes can have a huge impact overall!
All Purpose Cleaner Tablet – 0 Waste Cleaning
The first product that can help you reduce your waste is the all-purpose cleaner tablets. These tablets are super easy to use and compatible with any spray bottle. All you do is add one to add warm water and wait 5 minutes for it to dissolve and shake well. These tables are lightweight, biodegradable and have less of an impact on the earth as they are plastic packaging free. Cleaning products often produce a lot of plastic packaging and harsh chemicals so this is a great replacement. There are also other tablets such as foaming hand soap as well as glass and bathroom cleaner tablets.
Bring Your Own Containers
Next time you head to do some bulk shopping or walk into Planet Panty, remember that these places will accept your own containers as a means to buy anything in bulk or to put any products you buy in so that no further packaging is used. Use your old empty take-out containers, jars, plastic containers, old shampoo/conditional bottles, or even your milk/juice jugs. This is a great way to divert some of the plastic waste from landfills and use it for good. Just make sure that the container is clean, dry, and empty to use.
Dish Brush
We all know that kitchen dish brushes can get pretty gross. The great thing about this brush is that it is completely compostable…except for the medal which is recyclable. It scrubs without scratching AND the best part is the head is replaceable! So as soon you want to replace the head, simply throw it in the compost and attach another one. This creates less waste than buying a new plastic dish brush every time you need a replacement.
So Much Bulk!
Less packaging and fewer trips to the store are just some of the reasons why buying bulk is a great idea and helps reduce waste. All of Planet Pantry’s bulk products are free from toxins, so you don’t have to worry about anything going down the drain. A great thing about buying bulk is you can fill up on as much or as little as you like. It’s also a good way to try different things and find what works best for you. Some of the bulk products you can find at Planet Pantry are shampoo, conditioner, sunscreen, essential oils, and many more! Bring those reusable containers to fill up on whatever is a good fit for you.
Reusable Razors
Eliminate plastic waste by switching to a safety razor that lasts forever! It will be the last razor you will ever need to buy. Each blade lasts 5 to 8 shaves before you need to replace them. The blades are recyclable and can be purchased in packs of 5, 20, or 100. This will be a bit of an investment, but over time you will make your money back and keep plastics out of the landfill.
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