Happy April, Bears!

April 22nd is Earth Day, a day recognized for environmental protection efforts, so it is only appropriate to discuss sustainability efforts employed at the Bear Pantry!

Bear Pantry’s Sustainability Practices

• Reusable Bags
  • Instead of having single use, plastic bags available for Bear Pantry members to use after shopping, we encourage everyone to bring a reusable bag. New members receive an MSU maroon reusable bag upon completion of the membership form!
  • Reusable bag tips:
    • Always keep one with you. Accessibility will encourage use. Whether in your car or folded up in your backpack, having a reusable bag with you is a great practice.
    • Find a heavy-duty brand you like. Durability of bags is important! If the bags are durable, you are more likely to use them. Some stores only provide shoppers with reuseable bags at checkout. Other stores offer a discount for bringing in reusable bags instead of using their single-use bags. A one-time purchase of a reusable bag can save money in the long run!
    • Keep them clean! When handling food products, it is necessary to ensure the bags are clean. For cloth bags, a quick run through the washing maching is enough. For sturdy plastic, a wet paper towel or disinfectant wipe might be all you need.
    • Educate others! Further sustainability efforts by encouraging friends and family to adopt this habit. You could even give them a reusable bag or two.

• Supporting Local Farms (Community Supported Agriculture)
  • Campus Garden and Amanda Belle’s Farm are both community partners with the Bear Pantry. By supporting local farms through distribution of their product, we are ensuring that we foster community connections and provide students with fresh, seasonal produce.
  • Community Supported Agriculture (or CSA) is where community members pay weekly, monthly, or seasonally for a “share” within a farming operation. This gives farmers the capital to pay for supplies and grow crops, giving the consumer fresh, seasonal, and local produce throughout the growing season.

• Composting Waste
  • What is composting? According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), composting is “the managed, aerobic (oxygen-required) biological decomposition of organic materials by microorganisms.” Food scraps and yard waste are excellent compost materials. Compost can be added to soil to increase nutrient composition and overall soil health. More information about composting here. At the Bear Pantry, any fresh food products that we recive that are not appropriate for distribution (fruits and vegetables that are decomposing, bread that is moldy, etc.) are composted via a designated compost site.

• Recycling
  • What is recycling? According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “recycling is the process of collecting and processing materials that would otherwise be thrown away as trash and turning them into new products.” More information about recycling here. Yard waste, cardboard, plastic, aluminum, tin, and so forth, can all by recycled. Here at the Bear Pantry, we focus on recycling cardboard (since most of our food products come packaged in cardboard boxes) after each delivery.

• Nutrition Education and Recipes
  • What does nutrition education and recipes have to do with sustainability efforts? A lot! If members are not able to use the food they receive from the pantry, then that is contributing to food waste (which is not sustainable, especially if this food is going into the landfill and not the compost bin). Utilizing resources (such as Nutrition Corner) provided by the Bear Pantry can help decrease food waste. Nutrition Corner focuses on providing members with easy access to recipes tailored to foods provided in the pantry. There are also nutrition education handouts on how to make canned and packaged foods more healthful through adding sources of protein, decreasing sodium intake, and so forth. These recipes are created by MSU nutrition and dietetics students, studying to be Registered Dietitian Nutritionist.
  • Link to Nutrition Corner

 

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