How to have an eco-friendly Easter
How was Easter 2021? We hope you had a fun family celebration. Are you looking forward to 2022? You’ve got chocolate galore, hot cross buns, Easter egg hunts and a delicious family meal, what’s not to love? In the UK Easter is Sunday 17th April 2022, so get it in your diary and make this easter eco-friendly!
Just like at Christmas, all of this extra indulgence can have an impact on the environment. So how can you minimise your family’s impact? Here’s how to have an eco-friendly Easter.
Opt for a more sustainable Easter egg
Your average Easter egg is packaged in foil, encased in plastic, then packed in a cardboard box. This equals a lot of potential waste. It’s not all bad news though, some companies are working to reduce the packaging in their Easter eggs and increase the number of recycled materials they use in their packaging. For example, Nestlé UK & Ireland announced that the Easter egg packaging across its entire range is 100% recyclable and it has replaced rigid plastic with paperboard in its mug eggs.
Another smart move is to opt for eggs made from Fair Trade chocolate. Companies that abide by Fair Trade practices pay farmers a fair price for their cocoa crops. Farmers that aren’t paid enough end up having to farm in protected areas to earn more money and this illegal deforestation is having an impact on the planet.
You could, of course, give the Easter eggs a miss altogether. Why not bake some Easter biscuits or hot cross buns at home, make your own chocolate eggs, or give gifts like plants to family and friends? If you give something like a tomato plant, they could start growing their own produce, then it really will be a gift that keeps on giving.
Make an eco-friendly Easter
For a more eco-friendly Easter lunch, buy local produce and choose ethically-reared meat. You could always go meat-free to reduce your impact on the environment even further and save some pennies too. Here are some great meat-free Easter lunch ideas. Work out how you will use up any leftovers in the days after Easter.
When it comes to the actual cooking, you can save energy by using a slow cooker instead of the oven and a steamer instead of the hob or microwave.
Make your Easter egg hunt greener
If the kids love an Easter egg hunt, make it more sustainable by opting for a wicker basket or fabric bag for them to collect the eggs in instead of a plastic basket. You will be able to store them away and use them for years to come.
When it comes to the eggs themselves, you can opt for wooden eggs which are a win-win. They are kinder to the environment than plastic and decorating them is a great Easter craft activity.
Have an eco-friendly Easter family picnic
If we are lucky enough to get some good weather over Easter, you might think about spending some time outdoors with the family, and a family picnic is always a winner. It can create a lot of waste, but with a little planning, you can have a waste-free picnic.
Use reusable bottles for water and juice, or a thermos flask for hot drinks and soup. Use reusable containers for sandwiches, cakes, biscuits, and any other treats you decide to take. Forget the shop bought snacks and sandwiches, making your own is kinder on the planet and your pocket.
Recycle, recycle, recycle
Whether it’s the cardboard from your Easter eggs or the packaging from your Easter lunch. Be sure to put the waste you do create into your recycling bin.