There’s a series of youtube videos going around the zero waste world where people in the lifestyle reveal all the weird and sometimes disturbing ZW habits that they have. I have quite a few habits that fall into this category, but I’ve narrowed them down. Here are a few weird things involving food and drink I do in the name of zero waste.
Eat expired food
I’ve been shocking instagram during quarantine bc I’ve been proudly displaying that I’m eating up items in my pantry that are past their sell by date. Remember, these dates are rarely when food will spoil, only when manufacturers want to have them sold and restocked by. Read them carefully. “Sell by” is for the store more than the consumer, “best by” might mean the product might not be as fresh after the dates listed. There is still a need to be careful when eating expired food. Always inspect it and make sure it hasn’t gone off, there are no bugs, or that the can hasn’t gone rusty.
Drink old coffee and tea
I know a lot of people who save their leftover coffee or tea for an iced version so this isn’t that weird, but it’s my normal practice to make extra of both of these and leave them in a jar on the counter to be heated (or not) and drunk at my leisure. As long as there is no milk in them, they last for a day or more no problem. If I have put something in them like milk, honey, etc… I pop them in the fridge.
Drink flat sparkling water
We drink a lot of seltzer in cans in our houes, and similarly to coffee or tea, we don’t always finish each can. Rather than wasting what’s left, I collect the cans the next day and drink them flat.
Wash plastic bags and cheese wrappers
When I’m doing the dishes, I am often washing cheese wrappers, the plastic film tops of food containers, plastic bags, etc… Where most people will just throw these ways, and some zero wasters are lucky enough to have eliminated them from their consumption, I have to do the best I can. I take all my plastic film to be recycled, and to be recycled, they must be clean and dry.
Do you practice any of these ZW habits? What weird things do you do all in the name of reducing your waste? Leave your weird habits in the comments.
Also, here are a few of the videos I’ve seen if you are interested.
Sedona Christina
Blue Ollis
Gittemary Johanson
