Emma: My plastic free journey

Meeting our customers is one of the best parts of our jobs! We are always inspired by their efforts to go plastic free and love hearing their journeys of how they came to start shopping plastic free and we thought you might do too! It is always inspiring to hear from others and in this brave new world of zero waste and plastic free its great to pick up hints and tips from each other and feel part of a wider community that together will make great change!

Emma used to visit us at the van to refill in Mount Hawke but since our service changed to home delivery during the pandemic she switched with us, here’s her story:

The starting point of my plastic-free journey was a mix of things.

First was a feeling of embarrassment as I put out 4 (or it might have even been 5) black bin bags one morning for our fortnightly refuse collection, only to watch my neighbour saunter out with one small black bag for a family of 4. I was embarrassed to be putting out so much rubbish.

The second thing was watching the 3 part BBC documentary War On Plastic with Hugh & Anita on catch up. This series really opened my eyes to reality and I was shocked by some of the things it revealed.

The third thing was inspiring friends who had already started a journey to reduce plastic. They didn’t say much, they just lived it, and they told me about you guys and your business, Incredible Bulk.

So the fourth thing was meeting you two, Gemma and Jack. Seeing the van. Chatting to you. Asking you how to start to make lifestyle changes, to make a difference. And I have learnt huge amounts from you over the last 18months. Never once did I feel judged for the way I had been doing things, and never did I feel bombarded with information. Just encouraged and helped along my journey.

The fifth things were two books I read. They were ‘Detrash your life in 90 days’ by Katie Patrick, and ‘Zero Waste Home’ by Bea Johnson. Both got me thinking about changes that could be made.

So all of that was what came together over a relatively short space of time to inspire me to start making changes. And we have made lots of changes over the last 18 months. There are still more changes to be made. But it is a great journey to be on!

My favourite items to buy package free has changed over time.

At first it was Bombay Mix. I had previously loved crisps, but didn’t want to purchase crisps anymore due to their packaging. So the Bombay Mix from Incredible Bulk was my swap for crisps.

Then it was the vegan organic dark chocolate buttons. Yummy. And they make a great present in a nice jar.

Then it was loose leaf tea and then the sundried tomatoes.

Then, when I discovered they stocked toothpaste tablets that contained the recommended level of fluoride they became my favourite. Admittedly toothpaste tablets take a bit of getting used to, but I’m just glad they had an option with fluoride!

For anyone starting their journey, changing your lifestyle is achievable!

Find someone who inspires you and learn from them how to make changes towards a lifestyle with less plastic. Then just start! One change at a time.

There is so much information available to read online or watch on youtube about how to make changes. I have enjoyed watching some of the talks by Bea Johnson on YouTube, and would recommend listening to her or reading her book Zero Waste Home.

Incredible Bulk is great for dry goods, toiletries, and advice too! And they have gift ideas too.

You could also consider getting a veg box delivery from someone local to you, or even start growing some of your own veg. We started growing veg last year for the first time, and I found the book ‘veg in one bed’ by Huw Richards invaluable.

Just try package free where you can. Small changes build up over time and can make a big difference.