I’m dreaming of a green Christmas
Let’s have a sustainable Christmas in Birmingham. Get into the festive spirit with our tips for a zero-waste Christmas.
It's the time of the year where we indulge ourselves; shops are over-flowing with food, drink, and gifts, beckoning us in. But this can be bad news for the environment. Over the Christmas season we produce a shocking 30% more waste than any other time of the year.
However, change is in the air, with over half of UK adults wanting to celebrate Christmas in a more environmentally friendly way. Keep reading below for our sustainable festive tips.
Don't forget there are changes to kerbside waste collections over the festive period.
Make your festive feast more fair for the planet
There is no denying that food is an important part of Christmas. However, 45% of Brits admit to over-buying Christmas food, (according to BusinessWaste.co.uk), which leads to about 270,000 tonnes of good food being wasted. This is the equivalent of 2 million turkeys, 72 million mince pies, or 11 million roast potatoes being binned. Read below for some tips to make your festive feast better for the planet.
When shopping
Food shopping at Christmas is full of dangerous temptations. Try making a meal plan before leaving to make sure you don't over-buy, and be careful of unnecessary supermarket deals.
You could also cut down on food waste and packaging by buying fruit and vegetables loose, or buy your seasonal veggies like sprouts, carrots, parsnips and onions directly from local growers.
When cooking
When cooking, try to optimise all the edible parts of your food. BBC Good Food offers some helpful recipes which transform food scraps like vegetable peel, rind, and leaves into delicious trimmings, garnishes and sauces.
When serving your Christmas dinner, why not go for Family Style serving so everyone can choose how much they want on their plate, so less food is wasted.
After eating
Storing food is important, so make sure you have tupperware handy and space in your fridge and freezer.
Turkey sandwiches on Boxing Day are almost as beloved as Christmas dinner itself, but there are many creative ways to use your leftovers. Check out the Love Food Hate Waste's recipes, such as brussel sprout sauerkraut, or turkey and cranberry pie.
Eco-Friendly Gift Giving
We are all familiar with that feeling of panic when you've left a week for Christmas shopping, and you just need to make sure you get something special for everyone as soon as possible. But this can lead to unnecessary buys, creating waste. According to the GCVA, on average, everyone receives around 2 unwanted Christmas gifts. Here are some tips for stuffing stockings sustainably!
- Buy second-hand. Hunt for gifts in charity shops, online second-hand platforms, or at Community Reuse.
- Invest in sustainable brands. Shop consciously, with independent brands which prioritise reducing their carbon footprint.Check out the smaller Christmas markets around the city, like the Cathedral Square Craft Market, the Birmingham Botanical Gardens Christmas Market, or the Brindley Artisan Christmas Market.
- Gift experiences. Instead of risking a gift that could collect dust, gift someone an experience like theatre tickets, a concert, an online subscription, or a museum exhibition.
- Gift vouchers. Let your loved ones choose what they want for Christmas! You can also cut out plastic waste by gifting e-vouchers.
- Homemade gift ideas. Learn a skill and add a personal touch by gifting homemade presents. Check out this blog by the Woodland Trust for more ideas.
Check out our advent calendar to explore educational videos, activities, and tips
Items that must go in the general waste
Don't contaminate your recycling bins with these common Christmas Waste items.
Unfortunately, tinsel cannot be recycled. The plastics used to make tinsel can take more than 450 years to decompose, so if you are disposing of it, please put tinsel in your household waste.
Try plastic-free tinsel alternatives- read this blog from Moral Fibres to find out more.
Shiny, metallic or glittery wrapping paper or card can’t be recycled, because it is made from mixed materials which can’t be separated for recycling. If you are unsure, see if it passes the ‘scrunch test’. If you scrunch the paper and it springs back open, it’s made from mixed materials and should go in your household waste.
If you are looking for alternatives, consider the Japanese practise of furoshiki: wrapping gifts with fabric. Read of keiko furoshiki's blog on the topic for more inspiration.
Due to the use of shiny, metallic or glittery card, Christmas Crackers often can't be recycled. Often, the plastic toys which come with Christmas crackers also have to go into household waste (but remember to check the packaging).
It is best to opt for eco-friendly Christmas Crackers, or get creative and make your own. There are plenty of DIY kits available, and you can personalise gifts and jokes.
Items to recycle out of home
Electrical items
Electric waste includes any item that is battery-powered, or used a plug. Currently, the UK produces around 6 million tonnes of electric waste. Fairy lights are a particular problem at Christmas, with 500 tonnes thrown out every year!
They are full of increasingly scarce materials, like gold, silver, copper and platinum. Please bring them to your local HRC to be recycled! You can help reduce resource extraction, and reduce contamination or hazards from incorrect disposal.
Soft plastic packaging
Christmas inevitably produces a lot of packaging, but resist the temptation to bundle it all into household waste! Soft plastic packaging, such as carrier bags, frozen food bags, crisp packets, bread bags, cling film, fruit and vegetable nets, multi-pack packaging, can be taken to soft recycling plastic points located in supermarkets. Remember to make sure they are clean and free of stickers, so they can be broken down properly and turned into new items.
Christmas Trees
You can recycle your Christmas trees at your local HRC! This is certainly the more sustainable option- artificial trees have a carbon footprint more than 10 times the size of real trees that are recycled. Remember to look for trees that are locally grown, FSC certified, and organic.
In other words an artificial tree needs to be used more than 10 times to negate its environmental impact, so why not donate it to a re-use shop if you no longer want it?
Batteries
Batteries can start fires when crushed in recycling, so should never be placed in kerbside bins. Batteries can sometimes be hidden so double check items and recycle them separately and safely at your local HRC or collection points in supermarkets.
This will ensure hazardous materials do not enter the environment, and we can recover precious materials to be re-made into new batteries.
Gas and Helium cylinders
Gas and helium cylinders are considered dangerous waste, as they can cause explosions if damaged during transport or at the processing facilities. Help keep our crews safe by taking them to your local HRC, so we can recycle them safely!
Did you know that many retailers and suppliers will allow you to return your gas bottle for a replacement, once used? Check their websites to find out more about refill, exchange and return programmes.
Full or part-full aerosols
Make sure you’ve got the most out of your aerosols. But if you don’t you can recycle aerosols that are full or part full at your local HRC, just look for the signposted container or ask a member of staff to help.