For divain, the planet comes first. That is why we want to keep giving you ideas and advice on how to take care of the environment with small gestures. Today we delve into the world of bulk purchases.
If you want to be surprised, keep reading, because its number of benefits (both for the environment and for our wallets) are incredible. Surely you don't expect them!
Advantages of buying in bulk
You reduce plastic packaging. Everyone knows how harmful plastic is to the environment. Well... did you know that 39.9% of plastic generated in the world goes to manufacture of packaging? If we buy in bulk with our own containers or reusable cloth bags, we will be contributing to reducing the demand for plastic packaging. And in this life, direct proportionality rules: the less demand for plastic packaging there is, the fewer plastic packages will be manufactured. The result? A much happier and plastic-free world.
You buy only what you need. This translates into two great benefits, both for you and for the environment. First, food waste is avoided, since the quantity has been chosen by you and you won't have leftovers that you don't know what to do with and end up spoiling. On the other hand, you choose the exact amount, so if you need a small quantity, you will pay the price for that small quantity and not for the whole package, thus saving a few euros on each purchase (a very trick to save money day to day).
You support local commerce. Today more than ever it is vital that we support small businesses. And it is in these small shops where you can buy almost everything in bulk, unlike supermarkets, where 90% of what they sell is already packaged. Surely in your neighborhood you have a store where you can buy olives or nuts in bulk, while in supermarkets they are always packaged in quantities of 100 or 150 grams.
The products are more natural. As a general rule, the products we buy in bulk are 100% natural and organic, so their quality is much higher. They also usually come from small local farmers, so we kill two birds with one stone: we follow a healthier diet and help the development of our environment.
Possibility of having a much more varied diet. Have you never wanted to try a new food but didn’t because it came in a very large package and you felt bad that you might not like it and waste it? Well, that’s over with buying in bulk! You can get a small amount of the food you want to try and see if you like it or not without wasting anything, so your food horizons will expand and you will have a much more varied diet. Sounds good, right?
What types of products can be bought in bulk?
Many more than you imagine! Below we present some of the most common and easy to find, so that little by little you start introducing this consumption habit into your routine:
- Buy legumes in bulk, is one of the best options to get into the world of bulk buying, since it is a non-perishable product and easy to store. In any neighborhood fruit shop you can buy legumes this way. Bring a sturdy cloth bag with you so it can hold the weight of what you buy and not break.
- Buy tea or infusions in bulk is another great way to reduce plastic consumption, since almost all infusions come in bags or plastic containers. Take an airtight jar you have at home and go to an herbalist.
- Buy nuts in bulk is good, not only for the environment, but also for your wallet! These products usually have a high price, and when bought in small quantities even more, so the larger the quantity you buy, the better the price will be.
Where to buy in bulk?
Now that you have seen the advantages of buying in bulk, surely you have gotten (or at least we hope so) the urge to make this type of consumption. Now, you are probably wondering... where can I do it? You have two options, either buy in bulk online, or do it at small local shops.
Buying in bulk at local stores has great advantages since, by seeing the product live and direct, you will be able to better calculate the quantities what you need to buy and see its quality. You will also discover the charm of small businesses, where the treatment is super close and familiar, something that from divain we consider essential.
Buy in bulk online
Not having time to visit different physical stores is no excuse not to buy in bulk. And of course, the great Internet also offers us that possibility.
This way of consuming is ideal to get large quantities of non-perishable products and for those that are difficult to transport. An example of this type of product are oil or wine. Imagine the amount of glass and plastic containers we will be saving if instead of buying bottles liter by liter, we do it in much larger containers, of 15 or 20 liters.
Also, it is a very good way to support traditional wineries or olive oil mills directly that sell their product directly without going through intermediaries.
You can also buy spices in bulk online, since they are a non-perishable product and can be bought in large quantities.
If you want to discover more actions you can take to help the environment, you can't miss our article about small actions to take care of the environment that you can do every day. The change is in everyone's hands and every small gesture counts!
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