Can Thanksgiving be Eco-Friendly?
Posted on by Isabelle Brown
During the holiday season, we all have so much on our plates… Especially on Thanksgiving when our plates are full of delicious food! With a little extra TLC, we can make small changes to make our holiday eco-friendly. We’re here to help with 5 tips!
Carpool to Thanksgiving Day Dinner
Thanksgiving and the days leading up to it are always extremely busy days to drive. The roads are full of people going to and from family gatherings and rushing around for last minute grocery store trips. Ask your loved ones if anyone wants to ride with you to Thanksgiving this year. Less traffic congestion means less vehicle emissions.
Hear Us Out… Skip the Turkey
We know it’s hard to imagine Thanksgiving without carving a turkey. But, we can still keep the spirit of tradition with nostalgic and delicious side dishes while trying a new main course. The carbon footprint of the tens of millions of turkeys consumed every November is substantial. While, yes, turkeys are more efficient to farm and feed than other meat sources such as cows, it isn’t exactly sustainable. Isn’t the best part of Thanksgiving dinner the sides and dessert anyway?
Shop Local
Get your trimmings and sides from local growers! Shopping at a farmer’s market on the weekend can be a great way to check ingredients off your shopping list in a way that makes you feel great. A sustainable way to shop, both environmentally and economically, farmer’s markets can provide you with great quality and prices for your Thanksgiving staples like Brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes, and baked goods.
Reduce Waste
Wasting food is not on the menu this Thanksgiving. We are planning ahead and buying take-home containers so that all of our guests can help themselves to leftovers of their choosing. One sustainable tip is to thrift dishes from a secondhand store instead of buying single-use plastic containers. This way, your guests can reuse the dishes themselves, and you can minimize waste even more.
Give Back to the Community
If you have the means, buy a couple extra cans of corn or other non-perishables when you’re shopping for your Thanksgiving dinner. Grocery stores usually have food drive bins this time of year, and you can easily give back this way. With even a few dollars, you can provide people in your community with a little taste of the holiday season.
Happy Holidays!
We hope that having a more sustainable Thanksgiving can bring you a sense of gratefulness and pride this year. No matter how you celebrate, from your friends at The Rideshare Company: Have a wonderful holiday season!