How to be a more responsible consumer
In the supermarket, when buying clothes, choosing our means of transportation, or even picking toothpaste off the shelf - our daily lives are filled with small choices, and we all stand to gain if these choices are more conscious.
Responsible consumption is a way of consuming that takes into account both environmental and social impacts throughout a product's life cycle.
It involves selecting goods and services that, among other factors, avoid excessive consumption of natural resources in their production, ensure skilled employment for workers, and can be reused or recycled.
There are, therefore, countless opportunities for us to do more and do better.
With these tips we're sharing here, we believe your daily life can become more conscious and sustainable.
You don't need to do everything, and certainly not all at once.
Choose one area, the one that's easiest for you to put into practice, and start there. Take it slow and with no judgment.
1. In the Kitchen
Did you know that, according to the National Institute of Statistics, Portugal is the fourth country in the European Union that wastes the most food per person?
It's nearly 200 kilos per person every year.
And if you think this waste happens only in restaurants and supermarkets, you're mistaken.
Forty percent of food waste occurs at home, so there's no sidestepping responsibility.
What's needed is a change in habits, and here are some of the main ones:
Buy only what you need
Make a list before leaving the house after checking the fridge and pantry. This way, you avoid bringing home what you don't need and what you may still have in stock.
Plan your meals
If you know what you're going to cook, you can buy exactly what you need for each day.
And if you go to stores that sell in bulk, even better, as you can avoid buying large amounts of something you won't use fully.
Be mindful of expiration dates
"Best before" refers to the date until which the food retains specific qualities, according to the Portuguese Association of Distribution Companies.
That means the food can still be consumed after this date if stored properly. If you're still unsure, check by appearance and smell.
Pasta, legumes, and spices, for instance, can be used months after their expiration date without losing quality.
"Use by," according to the same association, indicates a date after which the food should no longer be consumed.
This typically applies to yogurt, for example. Even then, nothing beats opening and smelling it.
Make the most of your food
Wash vegetables thoroughly and use them whole, especially if they're organic.
Carrots, potatoes, pumpkins - no need to peel, particularly if you're making a soup or roast.
If you prefer to peel them, keep the peels in a container in the freezer and keep adding to it whenever you have similar scraps.
When you've collected enough, boil them with water and salt to make a delicious vegetable broth.
2. In Hygiene and Cleaning
Choose detergents carefully
Opt for biodegradable cleaning products that don't harm the environment. Whenever possible, buy in bulk to avoid extra packaging.
Turn off the tap
Whether brushing your teeth, showering, shaving, or washing dishes, use water sparingly. A dripping tap, releasing a drop every five seconds, can waste over 20 liters of water in a day.
Avoid plastic
For soap, shampoo, or shower gel, choose solid products that last longer and often come in non-plastic packaging.
You can even find toothpaste in alternative formats, made with ingredients that are safe for health and the planet.
3. In Mobility
Choose the bicycle
Walking or cycling is, without a doubt, the most eco-friendly way to get around.
Plan your routes to find those you can do without a car, and take advantage of bicycle-sharing systems now available in many cities across the country.
Opt for proximity
Try to make sure the places you frequent most are close to home.
This could be the supermarket, the gym, or any other activities you do regularly. Work can also require less commuting if your employer supports and encourages remote work.
Public transportation, always
If walking or cycling isn't an option, choose public transportation.
Not only do you avoid adding another car to the road, but you can also often reach your destination faster, with no worries about traffic or parking.
Fast Fashion: Buying to Be in Style
The fashion industry is one of the largest and most polluting industries globally, growing at a staggering pace.
Fast fashion is a production and consumption model where textile products are made, consumed, and discarded constantly and rapidly.
It's based on producing as much clothing as possible, as quickly as possible, and at the lowest possible cost.
Clothes are mass-produced and inspired by high-end brands, but they are of much lower quality, resulting in lower prices.
Small collections are mass-produced, quickly followed by new collections, which ensures pieces sell fast.
This cycle promotes excessive consumption and exploitative labor in poor conditions and causes catastrophic damage to the environment and health.
Why Is It Unsustainable?
- Increased Carbon Levels: Clothing production generates over 400 percent more carbon emissions per item annually than garments worn 50 times and kept for a full year. Coal, gas, and oil are used to produce synthetic fabrics, contributing to carbon emissions and toxic gases in the atmosphere. Polyester, one of today's most widely used fibers, takes about 200 years to decompose and is derived from fossil fuels;
- Water Pollution: Fabrics contain low-quality dyes, hazardous colorants, toxic chemicals, heavy metal-based products, and microplastics that are released through wear and washing. These often end up in wastewater systems and make their way into the ocean, where they continue to release harmful residues into the air and water until fully decomposed;
- Excessive Water Consumption: The fashion industry uses an estimated 93 billion cubic meters of water annually. For instance, around 3,000 liters of water are required to produce just one cotton T-shirt;
- Increased Transportation Usage: Many brands operate online, resulting in individual deliveries. For example, annual emissions from postal services in the United States are roughly equivalent to the yearly greenhouse gas emissions of 7 million cars;
- Minimal Wear of Clothing: With the pressure to follow fashion trends, these clothes tend to be disposable, worn only a few times before being discarded. An item that used to be worn about 50 times is now only worn an average of five times before it's tossed out;
- Waste from Poor Quality: These clothes quickly lose color and wear out due to their low quality, generating waste of materials and resources. Their poor quality also means they are often unfit for recycling;
- Fake Greenwashing: Many brands propose initiatives to collect used items in stores to be recycled and turned into new textiles. However, GPS tracking by NGOs has revealed that only about 20 percent of these items are recycled, with the remaining 80 percent ending up in landfills, mostly in Africa, or incinerated;
- Exploitation of Slave Labor: Production largely takes place in countries with limited or no human rights protections. To produce on a mass scale, quickly and cheaply, companies enforce long working hours, low wages, child labor, gender inequality, and even physical abuse;
- Unsafe Manufacturing Locations: Production sites frequently change to find cheaper labor and reduce costs, often in Asian countries. These locations tend to lack safety standards, basic conditions, and proper work environments;
- Compromised Health: Exposure to toxic substances and metals like lead can cause serious health issues for both the producers and the consumers of these clothes;
Words by Marta Cerqueira | Journalist, Co-Founder of Peggada, and Contributing Writer at "O Trevo" Magazine