Day 135 – There was a time, not too long ago, when my family was all about the individually wrapped snacks. Individual bags of chips, individual cups of apple sauce, individually wrapped cheese sticks, personal frozen pizzas, and so on and so on. Even though these food items were extremely convenient, they also produced a great deal of waste. We have turned the corner on individually wrapped (though granola bars pose a challenge) snacks and vow not to go back.

Buying in bulk can happen in two ways.

1. Purchasing larger sizes of food items, like what you would find at Costco and Sam’s Club.
2. Purchasing food items from bulk containers, choosing the amount you need and more times than not, being able to place it in your container. Similar to what you would find at zero waste stores.

For this post, I’ll be sharing reasons as to why purchasing in bulk at stores like Costco and Sam’s Club is helpful. I’ll cover purchasing in bulk at zero waste stores in a future post.

Pros of buying in bulk:

1. Overall, you can save money. Per unit, you will most likely pay less.
2. By having a larger amount of a product, it means less trips to the store.
3. Less packaging is needed.

Now, with pros come cons:

1. The initial expense of bulk items can be expensive.
2. Finding space for all those large items may be challenging.
3. Having a large amount of product may cause you to use more of it.

In my family, we have found that the pros outweigh the cons. Buying in bulk has been helpful in our goal to be more environmentally friendly. However, if you have a smaller family, it may make less sense. Another option is to shop with a family member or friend and share the bulk items between the families. Saving money and saving the planet. It makes perfect sense.

Tomorrow, the environmental cost of online returns.