Mark made an interesting point to me the other day about the considering the environmental impact of the things that we purchase. He was annoyed at me for wanting a shelving unit from Ikea for the baby's room - I really did have my heart set on this particular set of shelves!
But alas - he did make a good point and in this day and age where everything we buy is just so 'packaged' and consumable - it probably is something that we should be taking into consideration when making a purchase.
While I am getting the shelves - the simple act of getting them will have a massive environmental impact. First thing to consider is where they have initially come from - most likely overseas seeing as they are from Ikea. Then there is the fact that Ikea is in Sydney which is a three hour car trip from Canberra - and back again - in the process using a tank of petrol. Then there is the packaging - usually of which there is an overabundance - which will need to be disposed of and then transported to somewhere for processing - having a further environmental impact. I'm really really glad I am getting the shelves, but I think it is worth considering these things just simply to be more aware of the impact.
Personally I HATE packaging. It is everywhere and I swear that one day we as humans are just going to drown in the waste that we create on this earth. Whether that drowning is from a lack of oxygen in the atmosphere or something else - the amount of waste that comes from the 'thing's' that we buy that are processed and packaged does make it more difficult to tread the earth lightly. One of my pet hates and crusades at the moment is the packaging of meats to incorporate atmosphere modification in the process. I'm talking about those vacuum and gas packaged meats you see in the supermarket. Kangaroo is a meat that is often packaged in this way.
From the supermarket's perspective I can appreciate why they do this - it saves THEM money and reduces the wastage of meat that has gone past it's used by date. This is because vacuum and gas packaging of meats prevents backteria from growing that causes the discolouration and spoiling of meat to occur SO that means we are buying an older product without realising it. For example: Traditionally packaged ground beef has a shelf life of about five days, while modified atmospheric packaging can give ground beef a shelf life of 14 or even 28 days
I believe that we should also consider the amount of processing that goes into geting the meat to the vacuum packed stage. as well as what chaemicals we are subjecting our bodies to in the process. Just something to ponder.
One concept I recently came across was that of Locavores. The ideas is basically that you attempt to consume only what has been grown and produced locally - thus reducing your environmental impact. Cassandra forsythe did a post about it recently if anyone is interested in reading more. Localvores'
On that note - i'm off to the farmers markets to get me some vege's!
2 days ago
2 comments:
Hey Andrea
Choko Bai Jo is a small shop version of the markets, but it's open every day except Sundays. It is at the North Lyneham shops and opens during the week from 2-6 or 7. On Saturday it is open from 8-1ish.
They have everything marked with where it came from and whether or not it's organic. It is often cheaper than the markets too.
That's a great post Andrea and something I have been thinking a lot about as well. Air Miles some people call them... I've heard that planes are one of the worst causes of pollution (compared to other transports available)
It can get very confusing though trying to work out what to buy when you need something... Do I spend more and buy local or do I spend less and buy from overseas... Tricky!
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