Green Earth Practice: Buying in Bulk

I have always been a bit of a penny pincher (and my husband is even more of a penny squeezer). For us, buying in bulk is the perfect example of saving money and reducing our waste.   If you stop to think about all of the packaging that goes into some of your staple groceries, and then think about how often you buy those items... well, it adds up.  Buying in bulk just has always made the most sense for us.

 

We bring a load of mason jars and containers to the bulk food section of our grocery store.  And bringing your own containers is an even better way to reduce your waste and plastic consumption.  Fill 'er up!  Getting all the essentials in gallon size jars means less trips to the store, less packaging consumed on our end, and heck, it looks pretty in our pantry. Yeah, that last part is pretty vain considering the only people to see my pantry are my family members.  But hey, it makes me feel good. 

 

Most recently, we joined a group of community members that started a buying club.  Basically, its a community of us that has created our own co-op and buys straight from the wholesaler.  (Yeah, I didn't know it was a thing either until moving to rural Northern Michigan.)   The order is delivered to one of the members homes for all of us to then pick up.  This means that we can get our bulk items in even larger quantities and even cheaper prices.  And yes, if you are wondering, 50 lbs of organic quinoa is a lot of quinoa.  

 

Give it a try.  Save money. Reduce your waste. And try more green earth practices.