Have you ever heard the term ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’? These words have been repeated like a mantra for a simple way to reduce our waste, and yet the first two are largely ignored. If you’re wondering what else you can do besides recycling your plastic, metal and cardboard, then here are some simple tips to do more reducing and reusing.

Reduce
A simple way to reduce the amount of plastic you throw away or recycle is to not buy it in the first place. Yes, a big bag of carrots for 47p seems like a bargain, but if you just buy the two that you need, they’ll only cost you 10p and you can avoid the plastic bag. Buy loose fruits and vege-tables, and don’t be afraid to buy the ones that look a little strange or misshapen – they’re perfectly edible but most likely to go to landfill. Even better, try a greengrocer or a farmer’s market, where the foods are less likely to be grown commercially, meaning they will have travelled a much shorter distance by the time they’re on your dinner plate.

Whilst the bag for life scheme in supermarkets has paid off in massively decreasing single use bags, it’s not as good if you buy one every time you go to the super-market and forget to ever take them back again. A better option is a canvas bag: whilst these are more expensive, costing up to a few pounds each, they are much more durable and won’t rip apart when the corner of a pizza box pokes through them like their plastic counterparts.

Cut out things like sachets of sauces and opt for glass bottles when you can – not only are they cheaper per kilogram, but they’re also much better to recycle and do not cause as much harm to the environ-ment during production.

Reuse
Buying a reusable water bottle allows you to cut out all the loose plastic ones in the back of your car and means that they don’t all go to landfill when you throw them in the nearest waste bin. Plastic ziplock bags do not have to be single use items either, especially when used for storing things in the freezer or cupboard. Rinse them with water, dry them and use them next time you need them. Use old cereal boxes to make a new magazine holder, and old plastic fruit holders to store small items like packet mixes in your pantry which would otherwise fall over. Big ice cream tubs can be repurposed as sewing kits after being washed through, or they can hold your sandwiches or last night’s leftovers. Implementing small things means less waste thrown away, financial savings and a happier planet!