Whether you are trying to save money or be more conscious of your ecological footprint, cooking at home is a great step. When eating out at a restaurant, there are so many uncontrollable factors that are often unsustainable for the environment and incredibly wasteful. By making your own meals, you are able to control each step in your meal
preparation process.
If you’re going to a fancy dinner or just grabbing some snacks at the gas station for your road trip, there are endless layers to the sourcing, preparation, and packaging methods that are used. How can you know that the food you are being served was sourced sustainably and ethically? How much of those ingredients were disregarded in the process of making your meal? Think about the plastic wrapping and non compostable utensils you are given when ordering takeout. All of these effects can be minimized when you make the choice to cook at home!
Some facts about food waste
Restaurants around the world waste immense amounts of food everyday. The United States alone throws out about 80 billion pounds of food annually. Food waste contributes to a whole host of environmental issues like wasted water and energy which causes climate changing gasses to be more prominent in the environment. In a study done on food waste in the restaurant industry, it was found that 4-10% of food that restaurants purchase doesn’t even make it to customers and 30-40% of food purchased by consumers is never eaten. Lots of people don’t finish their meal when eating out, and of course it just gets thrown away.
Packaging in the food industry is also a huge issue. Think about how much plastic, paper, styrofoam, etc. is wasted everyday at just one coffee shop. Now multiply that by however many coffee shops are in the world and then think of all of the other food service establishments that exist. So many supposedly “green”, compostable, or plant-based containers do not actually get disposed of properly and still have a negative effect on the environment. These require special break down techniques at facilities that are hard to come by, so they just get thrown out and end up in landfills. This type of packaging has been found to contain many chemicals which are harmful to the environment whether they are composted or thrown away as trash.
How does cooking at home help?
Sourcing local, healthy ingredients is extremely important. Most ingredients used in restaurants are shipped from different areas which use lots of unnecessary packaging. I love to find my local ingredients at a farmers market which is often much more affordable than the typical grocery store, and I know where the products are coming from. I bring reusable bags so that I don’t use extra plastic which plays a huge role in reducing waste and pollution. Even at a grocery store when buying your own individual ingredients, you can be more aware and make the best conscious decisions. Cooking at home also allows you to use every part of your ingredients which could be using or composting parts of vegetables that would normally be thrown out. As mentioned before, many people never finish their meals when eating out. If you choose to eat at home you can portion your own meal so that you don’t waste the food that has already been prepared. You can store leftovers in reusable containers for another day as well. Planning your week of meals and snacks and cooking in advance can also help, because you won’t find yourself needing to grab meals when you’re on the go. This is a big money saver!
Some Tips for Eating Out Sustainably
Don’t get me wrong, I still have my favorite food spots or cafes where I love to grab a meal or coffee. Here are some tips I use when eating out!
Bring a reusable mug for coffee. I always bring a reusable cup/mug for a drink and you can let the barista know when you’re sitting in to put your coffee in a normal mug instead of a to-go one.
Bring reusable take-out containers. When getting a meal out, bring your own containers so you can take the leftovers home without the harmful packaging. I recommend Stojo collapsible containers you can keep in your tote bag.
Choose restaurants that clearly show sustainability as a goal of theirs. I do my research on places before eating there so I am supporting establishments that have the same goals in mind.
Eat seasonally and opt for places that use local ingredients and strive to minimize their supply chain.
Ask questions! I always ask the server questions about the menu, ingredients, sourcing, etc.
A few of my favorite companies that help me reduce food waste and eat out sustainably: