Green Tip – Plan for a Sustainable Thanksgiving

by Wendy Gabriel

GREEN TIP: Try to plan a more sustainable Thanksgiving. Plan ahead for perfect portions and plan out leftover packaging. At least 28 billion pounds of edible food is wasted each year – more than 100 pounds per person.

Use Less Stuff gives us 42 Ways to Watch Your Holiday Wasteline (pun intended). They’ve created a convenient list of approximate food portions for your Thanksgiving meal:

• Turkey- 1 pound per person
• Stuffing- ¼ pound per person
• Sweet potato casserole- ¼ pound per person
• Green beans- ¼ pound per person
• Cranberry relish- 3 tablespoons per person
• Pumpkin pie- 1/8 of a 9 inch pie per person

On to the leftovers:

You know you’re going to have them so make a plan. The Alternative Consumer has a wonderful suggestion in their green Thanksgiving guide.

Avoid plastic wrap. Most plastic wraps contain PVC which quickly winds up in landfills and has been linked to harmful environmental consequences. Use aluminum foil or, even better, send family home with glass or ceramic storage containers that they can return to you.

Or, call your guests and ask them to bring their own container if they’d like leftovers.

Above all, relax and enjoy your Thanksgiving, remember why we are celebrating.

Who does not thank for little will not thank for much. ~Estonian proverb

My Green Side’s weekly web pick:

Mother Earth News
Mother Earth News: the original guide to living wisely. The online presence of this magazine is filled with great information and how-to guides including Sustainable Thanksgiving Meals and Recipes.

Editor’s Note: Each Wednesday My Green Side brings Simple Tips for Green Living to The Christopher Gabriel Program. We also highlight a favorite green site each week. You can stream the segment at approximately 1020am (CDT) every Wednesday at WDAY.com.