I earned about the zero waste movement in 2010 after reading a book about it in the library. It was eye-opening and encouraged me to remove as much single-use package as possible.
But as I followed the advice，I met many challenges. It turns out that small town Ontario isn't nearly as progressive as San Francisco when it comes to allowing reusable containers in grocery stores.
That's when I wished I still live in downtown Toronto which would give me access to many health food store that allowed reusable containers. It took a while, but finally I realized that my location give me one key advantage over city's people. I now live at the center of food production, which means I can go directly to producers to get ingredients that are not only package-free but the freshest and most delicious.
"Zero waste should be thought as more of an ideal than an hard-and-fast rule. It's so geographically independent on what is in your area, so I think it is about doing your best to make use of the resources you have. " said Celia Ristow, founder of a website. It is refreshing to see that fact accepted by others. It's true that the best-known zero waste supporters are city's people, who have access to many stores and restaurants that are willing to work with them.
However, wherever you are, it is impossible to find a places that meets all the ideals criteria. But that doesn't mean we should stop trying. The food scene in my small town has changed greatly in the past six years and far more reusable choices have been available than before. We have a food co-op that allows for online ordering and home delivering, many locations for dropping off milk bottles, a growing summer farmer's market and large pick-your own fruit farm.
I tell people and remind myself to remove what you can. Maybe the farmer's market share are only seasonal, and you have to be perfect, in fact, as the saying goes, "Perfection is the enemy of progress. "
