According to case studies, households produce about 25% more waste between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day compared to the rest of the year. As Thanksgiving approaches and we start to make dinner plans, it’s important to think about the small changes we can make to lower our environmental impact during the holiday season and throughout the year.
13 Sustainability Tips to Lower Your Carbon Footprint This Thanksgiving Weekend:
1. Make natural autumn/Thanksgiving-themed decorations.
Instead of buying autumn decor, decorate with nature! Collect branches, pinecones, acorns, and colorful leaves from the ground. Not only will it save you money, but it will also add beauty to your table and home. After the holiday, these decorations can be returned back to nature.
2. Be realistic about your Thanksgiving dinner menu.
While Thanksgiving is a time to feast with friends and family, consider how much people are really going to eat before buying way too much food that could possibly go to waste.
3. Buy your food locally.
Try getting your grocery shopping done at a local farmer’s market. When you purchase goods locally, you are cutting down on carbon emissions as what you’re buying doesn’t need to travel as far.
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4. Think about food packaging when grocery shopping.
When purchasing groceries for your Thanksgiving meal, or any time of the year, be cautious of the packaging it is coming in. Consider if you will be able to reuse the container or not. Is the packaging recyclable? Is the food you’re about to purchase wrapped in unnecessary plastic?
5. Try cooking a vegetarian Thanksgiving dinner.
Do something different this year and serve a completely vegetarian meal! You’ll be using a lot fewer resources to create your meal as more resources go into raising animals than growing plants.
6. Cook a pasture-raised turkey.
If having a meatless Thanksgiving dinner isn’t something you’re willing to do, that’s ok. Buy an organic, pasture-raised turkey. These birds are free of antibiotics, hormone stimulants, preservatives, and other harmful ingredients. If you’re looking to add more meat to your meal, try to stay away from beef and lamb as these meats have a massive environmental impact.
Did you know that one kilogram of beef is equivalent to 27 kilograms of CO2, while one kilogram of turkey is equivalent to less than 11 kilograms of CO2! While we’re on the topic… Pound-for-pound, tofu emits 80% less carbon than turkey.
7. Carpool to Thanksgiving dinner.
Most families and friends gather for Thanksgiving celebrations, which means a lot of traveling. If you can, try carpooling with others that live close to you.
8. Turn down the heat.
You’re going to have a house full of people and a hot oven on for most of the day. Turn your furnace down a degree or two to conserve some energy.
9. Stay away from disposables.
While it might seem like an easier cleanup to use plastic or paper plates, utensils, cups, and napkins, try to set the table with reusable dishes and cloth napkins.
10. Reduce food waste.
Tons of food will be scraped into the garbage this Thanksgiving. Start with smaller portions to reduce this waste. Instead of throwing out your food scraps, take them to a compost center or use them in your garden as organic fertilizer.
What to do with leftover food scraps from Thanksgiving?
Check out this recipe for a delicious soup made from your leftover turkey carcass.
11. Store your Thanksgiving leftovers properly.
Everyone knows that one of the best parts of Thanksgiving dinner is the leftovers. Store uneaten food in reusable, glass containers or use reusable wax wraps.
12. Recycle! Recycle! Recycle!
Make sure that all your food packaging and ‘garbage’ is recyclable. Remember that those aluminum trays used for cooking a turkey are recyclable! Cleaning these pans can definitely be a chore, but it’s a large piece of aluminum worth recycling!
13. Give back to your community.
This Thanksgiving weekend, volunteer at your local food bank or donate extra unused food to a shelter.
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