Weekend Waste War I -- Results

The beautiful Lakeside Market

 Alvaro and I split our shopping between the Lakeside Farmers' Market and Whole Foods. We were virgins to both locations. We went to the market first to get what we could from local, responsible farmers, and what we couldn't find there, we'd get at Whole Foods. Their bulk section blew my mind! Build you own trail mix? Bulk honey and agave nectar? I was too
impressed. Does anyone else remember their *first time* to bulk heaven?

Farmers' Market bounty

Here's the waste count for both trips:

Total Waste (Lakeside):
- 2 berry basket 'nets'
- 1 plastic produce bag: one farmer tucked our zucchini and squash into one when we weren't looking, after we'd already asked for none. Oh well, old habits die hard I guess. We give these bags as many lives as we can, but I count 'em as waste since they'll eventually find their way to a landfill =(
-Beef bratwurst packaging
(On our next visit, we'll return the berry and potato baskets for future use.)

Whole Foods bounty

Total Waste (Whole Foods):
-3 plastic bulk bags
-3 twisty ties
-1 metal tie from the coffee bag
-2 small plastic ramekins from samples =/
-4 stickers on which items and PLUs were written
-1 wine cork

    We definitely need to take more jars next time. We had no idea, either, that you're supposed to take your own containers to Customer Service to get them tared prior to shopping... oops. We did that on our own at the bulk scale and really confused the cashier.

Bulk coffee bag from Whole Foods

Room for improvement:
-We'll refuse the berry basket nets that are meant to keep the berries from spilling. We tried in vain to think of any other uses for them. Ideas?
-Take more jars!
-Make bags for produce out of old clothes or pillow cases
-Don't use stickers, just write with... washable marker? Grease pencil? What's best?
-How to avoid trash from sampling:
       -Turn them down next time (unthinkable)
       -Have the sample person drop the goodies right into our hands (too messy)
       -Bring our own little cups (BINGO)

MIND MUNCHIES:

How do you think we could have done better?

What garbage do you create by grocery shopping that you hadn't really thought about before?

Random: Why do our palms get sweaty when we're up high? That doesn't seem like a good survival adaptation. When grabbing onto something is a life or death situation, that's when I need my hands to be drier than the Sahara.