Easter Sunday is fast approaching and we are sure many of us will be celebrating in one way or another - whether it's an egg hunt for the kids or an al-fresco roast dinner. Easter can, unfortunately, be very wasteful, generating approximately 5000 tonnes of waste from chocolate treats in the UK alone! Luckily, we have some top tips to help you reduce the waste this Easter so that everyone can enjoy a more sustainable celebration...
Image via Mob
Ethical Chocolate
There are now a huge amount of options out there allowing us to make ethical chocolate choices, including Fairtrade, vegan and palm oil free eggs and chocolate treats. We recommend picking chocolate that is ethically sourced and made. We're loving Love Cocoa at the moment, and for every bar made, Love Cocoa are planting a tree in Northern Cameroon. Not only is this chocolate slave-free, Palm Oil free, single origin, and contains plastic free packaging, it is the tastiest chocolate you will ever try (trust us - we've tried a lot of chocolate!) We're also huge fans on Ombar, a B-certified brand who make the tastiest Organic raw chocolate around. We adore their Oat M'lk range which is available in a brilliant bundle.
Packaging
Packaging of Easter eggs is one of the biggest culprits in the fight against unnecessary waste. We buy a whopping 80 million chocolate eggs each year. Up to a third of the weight of an Easter egg is its packaging, and over 4,300 tonnes of cardboard is wasted every year from Easter egg packaging. You can see how your favourite egg weighed in here. Remember that you can recycle cardboard, the plastic insert that holds the eggs in place, and also the foil that wraps most eggs (simply scrunch the foil into a ball and recycle it when the ball reaches at least the size of a ping-pong ball). To get more chocolate for your money and make a more sustainable choice, look out for chocolate with minimal packaging, such as Montezuma's 100% recyclable packaged eggs or Happi oat milk plastic-free packaged egg.
Decorations
If you enjoy decorating for the season, instead of picking up plastic bunnies or baskets, we suggest decorating with reusable items than can be enjoyed year-round. Our Bunny Rabbit Salad Servers are perfect for your Easter celebrations, but can also be used throughout the rest of the year. Each pair of salad servers is hand crafted using sustainably sourced Kenyan olive wood to fair trade standards, so they are kind to the environment whilst also being super cute. Similarly, our Indian Recycled Paper Decorations are the ideal reusable decoration as they are perfect for any kind of celebration. Each bauble has magnets inside to close it so they can easily be put up and down as often as you like. Each brightly coloured decoration is handmade using 100% recycled paper in a socially accredited factory. You could also make your own reusable decorations by getting creative! There are thousands of wonderful craft projects online and your decorations will be extra special as they are one of a kind.
Easter Food
Before shopping for an Easter roast, consider purchasing local produce. If you eat meat and eggs, please choose organic and free-range options from local farmers. If you are based near our Margate store, we highly recommend Kent Fresh for all your produce needs! Alternatively, reducing your meat intake is great for the planet and there are plenty of options for a plant-based Easter dinner. (P.S. most hot cross buns are actually vegan!) As important as your food choices are, it is equally important to make sure you are not wasting food. Potatoes, chicken and carrots are all in the top ten most commonly wasted foods in the UK. If you are planning a roast dinner for your Easter meal it’s worth paying special attention to these foods. There are several apps available to help you keep track of the use by and best before dates on your foods with a reminder. Some will also suggest recipes based on what you have in stock like Cozzo.