Reducing Waste

Reducing your waste is a great way to reduce your impact on the environment. From thinking differently about what you buy, to using re-usable items - there are lots of ways to make a real difference.

Food waste

Avoiding throwing out food will save you money and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Some ways to avoid throwing out food include:

planning meals ahead of time to avoid unnecessary buying
freezing perishable food, such as part loaves of bread, to prevent waste
perfecting portion sizes - only cooking what you need
storing and freezing leftovers
always writing a shopping list
using up leftovers

Love Food Hate Waste is a national campaign providing handy tips and advice to help everyone waste less food.

Home Composting

Home Composting is the most environmentally friendly way of of dealing with all your vegetable waste, fruit waste (banana skins, orange peel and similar) and garden waste. Plus it produces compost that can be used as an excellent soil improver.

Donate, sell and swap (for example charity shops or auction sites)

Many of the things we throw away haven't always reached the end of their useful life. Something that you don't want any more can still be used by someone else.

Discover the positive effect of re-use by:

donating to charities, such as Recycle Now
selling unwanted items

Having a clear out? Donate good quality clothing, books and unwanted gifts to charity shops. Alternatively use the clothing banks at your local recycling centre.

Large items of furniture can be collected for reuse by one of the following organisations:

Repair and reuse

Many of the things we throw away haven't always reached the end of their useful life. Before getting rid of them, think of repairing or upcycling them.

When it comes to clothing, it's easy to Love Your Clothes. This allows us to save money and help the environment by making simple changes to the way we buy, use, and get rid of our clothing. See WRAP's Love Your Clothes website for further information.

Recycle carrier bags and reduce packaging

Some supermarkets will collect plastic carrier bags at their stores as a result of an agreement with the On Pack Recycling Label (OPRL) scheme. Some may also accept clean plastic film packaging for recycling, including bread and salad bags, and crisp packets.

Please visit Recycle Now's website for further information.

If you wish to report an item with excessive packaging, confusing labelling or the failure to use recyclable materials please contact Lincolnshire Trading Standards on 0808 223 1133 or email tradingstandards@lincolnshire.gov.uk

Reusable Bag for Life

By switching to a "Bag for Life" you can help with the reduction of plastic waste.

Here are a few handy hints to help you remember to use your bags:

take bags with you every time you go shopping
keep spare bags in your car or at work so you're never without
let the check-out staff know you've brought your own before they pack for you - some shops offer rewards for bag reuse

Stop Unwanted Junk Mail

Reducing the amount of junk mail you receive reduces the amount of waste paper that has to be disposed of and recycled.

Here are some ways you can help to reduce your junk mail:

join the Mail Preference Service to have your name removed from Direct Mailing lists
reduce unaddressed junk mail by joining the Royal Mail Door to Door service (further details can be found by contacting Royal Mail)
refuse leaflets and flyers - display a "No Junk Mail" sticker on your door or mail box
avoid joining mailing lists or leave mailing lists - When filling out forms or surveys, tick the box stating that you do not want to receive further information or offers