Tips for zero waste during the holidays

Living with an eye for the environment is possible without upsetting your daily life: here are some simple tips for zero waste during the holidays!

Having a lower environmental impact is possible, it depends on the small choices of every day, whether they concern Christmas gifts or how to set the table for Christmas Eve dinner.

10 sustainable ideas for zero waste parties

• Choose gifts with low environmental impact

If possible, avoid plastic toys and complicated items that your loved one can easily do without. Better to donate something useful, especially if made with natural and recyclable materials such as wood and fabric.

• Make gifts with your own hands

A gift is even more heartfelt if it is made with your own hands. Do you want to have the satisfaction of making a warm scarf for your sister with knitting needles or even give little bags full of fragrant biscuits made with your own hands? Or even scented candles, preparations in jars for hot chocolate made with organic cocoa e soaps with coconut oil.

• Do not buy laminated gift cards

Gift paper, especially if laminated, as well as bows and rosettes, are colorful and festive accessories, yes... but they will become waste after a second, when the gifts are unwrapped. So why not change your point of view? Recycle newspaper to wrap splendid rustic packages, embellished with natural elements such as leaves and pine cones, or with stars and puppets created with the Japanese origami technique.

• Recycle materials to make homemade Christmas packaging

Don't go out and buy new baskets and bags if your closet is full from last Christmas! Recycle packages and wrappings that are still in good condition, indulge your imagination by creating patchworks of different creped papers, or fill the baskets of past gifts with new handmade delicacies.

• Better handmade decorations and table centerpieces

Ditto for home and Christmas table decorations: try using your hands, your imagination and the elements of nature for creations full of style and Christmas spirit! Pine cones, fallen pine sprigs, leaves and dried fruit shells, tied with old ribbons and LED lights, can become truly magical accessories.

• Make a punctual shopping list so as not to overdo it

Decide what the Christmas menu will be and multiply the quantities by the number of people present at the table, without senselessly exceeding. This will be an excellent saving for your wallet, a way to not have to eat "leftovers" for days after the party and above all to not waste food, so as not to have to throw it away because it is excessive. A small form of respect not only for the Planet but also for all those who do not have as much at their disposal as we do.

• An impeccable mise-en-place

As with wrapping paper, the choice of materials for setting the table is also important. Instead of buying disposable Christmas tablecloths, for example, you could think about giving a new life to that splendid old grandma's tablecloth, with a set of matching napkins, that you've kept in your drawer for years. And, obviously, avoid plastic plates and cutlery, preferring the use of normal or at least disposable but compostable tableware.

• Do not throw away leftovers but recycle them in the following days

What if you failed to apply the advice in point 6? Ok, you have exaggerated a little with the portions, don't worry, the essential thing is not to throw away good food but to recover it. A nice idea is to make doggy-bags to distribute among the guests, so that each one takes home a bit of their favorite dish. Or you can create delicious recycled dishes the next day: the excess risotto, for example, compacted into meatballs and fried, takes the form of delicious croquettes!

• If possible, choose foods whose origin you know

Not only the right quantity but also a lot of quality: choose seasonal fruit and vegetables, fresh foods, preferably organic or in any case whose origin you know. You will gain in taste and health.

• Try some plant-based substitutions for your traditional dishes

We are launching a small provocation, in favor of the many vegan friends we all have: why not try including more vegetables in this Christmas lunch? We have hypothesized here an entire vegan menu to make even the most traditional cuisine 100% vegetal.