Happy New Year!
With things getting back to normal and new year’s resolutions fresh in our minds, it’s the perfect time to look at some of the small steps we can all take to live more sustainably in 2023.
Whether you take one of these ideas as your inspiration for the coming year, or you decide to add several into your daily life and routine, they’ll all add up and help to make a difference over the next 12 months—and some might even become habits for life!
Say goodbye to single use
From shopping bags to coffee cups and water bottles, making reusables a part of your daily routine is one way to cut down on unnecessary waste.
A one-off investment of just a few pounds can help to cut out a huge number of single-use items in our daily lives, whether it’s reusable fruit and vegetable bags for your weekly shop or the tote bag you keep tucked away so you never need to buy another plastic or paper shopper.
The UK government is taking action on some single-use items already, recently announcing a ban on plastic cutlery and plates, but in our daily lives we can take this a whole lot further.
Reuse, repair & recycle
Before you throw those items in the bin, consider if there’s a better way to reuse, repair or recycle them. There could be plenty of life left in them, but they might just need a bit of TLC.
We’re quick to throw clothing away the moment things have a hole or a missing button, but some simple sewing and darning skills can give things a whole new lease of life, save you money, and stop more clothes from ending up in landfill.
Swapping with friends and family, donating to charity shops, and online websites and groups are other great ways of helping unwanted goods find a new home.
Make sustainable swaps
Here at Lovebug we’re big fans of sustainable swaps—that’s why we developed Lovebug, after all. There will often be more sustainable alternatives to daily necessities (like cat food!) and a bit of research can uncover some great swaps for those everyday essentials around the home.
From opting for greener cleaning supplies or switching your kitties to Lovebug food, these swaps are pretty much effortless but can make a big difference when it comes to cutting down on your household’s waste and environmental impact.
Cut down food waste
A 2021 UN report found that, on average, each person wastes 74 kg of food per year. We can all help to reduce how much food we waste at home, from only buying what we need, storing food properly, measuring portions sizes (especially foods like pasta and rice) and learning how to make best use of the food we have in the fridge or cupboard.
The food we eat—and the food we don’t—is a big part of our environmental footprint. Many day-to-day staples are shipped hundreds or thousands of miles, and require a lot of energy and resources to be produced.
Eat more plants
We know that our cats need a high protein diet, which is why insects make a great planet-friendly alternative protein. But humans are omnivores, which means we can thrive with or without meat, meaning we have plenty of planet-friendly, plant-based diet options available to us!
A diet rich in plants is kinder to the planet, so increasing the amount of plants you eat—like vegetables, legumes and fruit—and cutting down on meat and dairy can really reduce the environmental impact of your diet.