How to Be a Conscious Eater

BULK AISLE BEST PRACTICES

1 BYOC. Bring your own container. Cotton drawstring bags

work great for dry goods (nuts, legumes, whole grains),

and glass jars are perfect for liquids or spreads like olive

oil or freshly ground peanut butter. The zero-waste blog

Litterless.com has a state-by-state database of stores that

let you bring containers from home. To avoid paying for

the weight of your container, place it on the scale empty

before filling it up so you can subtract that amount at the

register.

2 Read the label. While you’re busy demonstrating

eco-citizenship, don’t lose sight of the health part of the

equation: Just because an item is found in the bulk aisle

doesn’t mean it’s healthy. Cross-reference the Nutrition

Facts panel and ingredients list on the bin just as you

would for a packaged food.

3 Do the math. There are loads of deals to be had in

this part of the store, but you’ll want to do some quick

calculations to avoid sticker shock at checkout—rosemary

sea salt cashews, for instance, can cost a pretty penny,

whereas plain cashews might be a steal. Maybe it’s worth

seasoning them yourself at home instead? Or take a

simple trail mix of chocolate chips, almonds, and dried

cranberries—you’re paying a premium for someone

to mix those items together, whereas buying the three

ingredients from their separate bulk bins will likely be

where the savings are.

Stuff that Comes from Factories 175

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