All of us here at Cedrec are dedicated and relentless in our pursuit of environmental perfection, as we're sure you all are too! So here's our guide on how to have a festive and green Christmas this year...
Avoid the last minute supermarket dash, and head for your local farmers market or farm shop. A weekly veg box can make life easier and save you a potential drive - which is a big chunk of your food-related emissions. Also go for a free range, preferably organic, turkey. Over 10 million turkeys are eaten in the UK at Christmas, with most having being reared in huge windowless sheds holding up to 2,500 birds each.
Over the festive period £700 million is spent on extra Christmas chocolate. Cocoa beans have halved in price over the last 10 years, but the price of chocolate has increased by two thirds, so it's not the farmers making the extra money. Try to buy Fair Trade products such as coffee, tea, bananas, sugar, orange juice and honey, to make sure that farmers receive a fair price and enjoy better working conditions.
You can also get the party going with organic wine, beer, cider and spirits. Then bask in the knowledge that your hangover will be that little bit healthier.
Over five million Christmas trees are bought in the UK every year, and most are thrown out. This creates enough waste to fill the Royal Albert Hall three times. To combat this you could rent a living tree, which will be delivered to your door in a pot with some feed to keep the tree healthy. When the festive period is over your tree will be collected and returned to the ground. Alternatively, make sure you recycle your tree properly, and don't leave it out in the vain hope that the bin men will take it!
Around 1.7 billion Christmas cards are sent every year in the UK - the equivalent to 200,000 trees. Only a small percentage are made from recycled paper. Why not consider going all Blue Peter and try making your own? Tesco and WHSmith also run a card recycling scheme until the New Year, all in aid of the Woodland Trust.
Most of the extra household waste generated over Christmas and New Year ends up being dumped in landfill sites or incinerated, which destroys potentially useful raw materials and causes pollution. Reduce, re-use and recycle materials that would otherwise be thrown away. Recycle material such as glass, plastic, tin, paper, cardboard, textiles and old electronic devices. You could also donate any unwanted presents to a charity shop.
