Well Fed On the Town

Operation Green is a bi-weekly Well Fed On The Town column where editors Cate O’Malley and Sarah Caron explore their efforts to live greener lives. Follow along as they forage for local food, find more Earth-friendly solutions and decide what their limits are.

Sarah Caron: Well, we’re nearing two months into our greenifying and it’s really becoming apparent what is working out, at least on my end. How about for you?

Cate O’Malley: Product-wise, for me, one clear no-go are the reusable dryer sheets from Trader Joes, which I was really bummed about. They look like lavender sachets and you can use them for up to 5 dryer cycles. On the 4th cycle, the sachet fell apart, spewing the little inside pieces all over the clothes. On the flip-side, I’ve definitely discovered a few new products that have been very easily integrated into our routine.

Sarah: My Method reusable dryer sheets didn’t work out either - you are supposed to be able to use them for two washes, but inevitably the second wash would be horrifyingly static-y. One of the things I also have had to reevaluate is my desire to steer clear of grocery stores altogether. It’s very hard to find locally grown, raised, etc here, particularly when you are working around a full time job. But I have managed to mostly shop at a locally owned grocery instead. And I have begun frequenting local farms for produce. But some is still coming from the grocery store. Unfortunately the farmer’s market that is on the weekend in my town hasn’t had it’s vegetable stand this year, so I have had to seek out other markets and farms to buy direct from the local farmers.
Cate: Now that farmer’s market season is here, I have been getting nearly 100% of my fruit and vegetable items from there. In the past, I’ve gone to the farmer’s market maybe twice a month. Now, I’m making the concerted effort to go every week to restock our fruits and veggies, along with other local finds I’ve discovered there along the way.

Sarah: Another thing for me: I haven’t been able to completely abandon the solvents. I use the Method cleaner for counters usually, but I have white Formica (for a little while longer at least) and it stains terribly. So I’ve had to keep some SoftScrub handy for that. But once we get new counters in the fall, that problem should resolve itself.

Cate: Totally agree. There are some things, at least for now or until we find a better substitute, that we just won’t be able to give up. Mrs. Meyer’s Counter Spray is fab, but it’s more more quick clean-ups. When I was at the Fancy Food Show last week, I stopped by their booth, and they have many new products coming out, so be on the look-out for that.

Sarah: I hate to jump around but, back to the grocery store thing - organics have been a challenge too. I just cannot justify the expense sometimes. But I am still trying to make smart choices on what should be purchased organically and what shouldn’t.

Cate: True, and not everything is available in an organic form either.

Sarah: So, for next time, how about finding local sources?

Cate: Sounds good to me.

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