Eco – Friendly Easter Tips

We have three Easter traditions in my family. We eat hot cross buns, the kids get a chocolate surprise on the end of their bed from the Easter bunny, and we have lunch at Nana’s with a chocolate egg hunt for the kids. Simple, fun.

Obviously we want to limit the amount of waste we create this Easter, and if I was more organised I would have a go at making the chocolate eggs myself but I’m not and I’m tipping many of you aren’t either, so I thought I’d share some eco-friendly ways that we can vote with our dollar when it comes to purchasing Easter eggs. It’s definitely not just about the packaging when it comes to chocolate.

Don’t Go Overboard.

Less consumption means less waste. Simple.

Buy Fairtrade Chocolate

Buy Fairtrade chocolate to ensure farmers and workers in the developing world have decent working conditions and can address local sustainability issues. Did you know there is human trafficking and child labour in the Easter egg supply chain? To know which eggs are #traffikfree download this Good Egg Guide and check out the Stop the Traffik campaign.

Demand Palm-Oil Free or Certified Sustainable Palm Oil (CSPO) products

Palm oil is one of the most significant causes of deforestation which is pushing species like orangutans to extinction and affecting climate change. Tools like the Palm Oil Barcode Scanner App can help you make good choices.

Read next: Palm Oil Free: The Hidden Benefit Of Reducing Packaging

Buy an Easter Bilby instead of an Easter Bunny

The Bilby is an endangered species in Australia, in large part from competition with rabbits. Funds from the sale of each Bilby chocolate goes to the Save the Bilby Fund.

Choose Local

Reduce food miles by choosing locally grown and made.

Reduce Packaging And Food Waste

Avoid plastic packaging by buying hot cross buns in reusable cloth bags from the baker or make your own hot cross buns.

Choose chocolate with the least amount of packaging.There are lots of chocolate options that come wrapped in foil only.

As with any festive meal, reduce the associated packaging and food waste by shopping in bulk, planning thoughtfully, and using up leftovers.

Use reusable plates, cutlery, cups, napkins and so on.

Recycle Your Packaging

Recycle your foil! You must squash all your foil wrappers into a ball at least the size of a tennis ball to be able to recycle them in your kerbside bin, otherwise the pieces are too small for recycling facilities to manage. Planet Ark suggests making it a competition with family and friends to see who can make the biggest foil feature.

Rigid plastic and cardboard can be separated and recycled in your kerbside recycle bin.

Soft plastic like bread bags can be recycled by RED Cycle. To find a drop off point refer to this store locator.

Try Vegan Treats

Animal agriculture does have an impact on climate change. Here is a list of vegan chocolate Easter eggs and where to buy them.

I haven’t found an Easter chocoloate that ticks all of these boxes but it is possible to find some that almost get there, for example Haigh’s Chocolate Easter Bilby is Australian, family owned, palm oil free, and UTZ Certified. I’ll be looking for some with minimal packaging.

Please share in the comments below any brands that meet your eco-friendly criteria.