Reduce food miles, waste and packaging

Harvesting beetroot from the courtyard garden at Heelis, Wiltshire

We can reduce the environmental impact of what we eat by growing our own fruit and veg. If you don’t have your own back garden, why not help out at a community garden? Or do your bit by buying produce that’s in season and looking for package-free options.

Our lives revolve around food, but where does it all come from? Do we know the real cost food has on the environment? With an ever-growing population and a rising demand for variety and convenience, food has become one of the largest contributors to climate change. This is because of the huge amount of water needed to produce food, the emissions created from processing and packaging it, as well as food waste created at home.

You can help to reduce your impact in lots of ways, from choosing to go plastic free, to buying locally-sourced food, or even growing your own seasonal fruit and veg at home. Why not get the whole family stuck in with some tasty recipes using home-grown ingredients or locally sourced produce?

Read more below about the simple steps you can take to achieve a more sustainable approach to food.

  Make your promise for nature
How to keep your promise
Gardener picking fresh ruhbarb from the Kitchen Garden at Felbrigg Hall, Norfolk.

Grow your own 

Thinking about growing your own food? We have some great ways you can use your produce and tips to get the best from your ingredients.

Image shows a variety of sustainable products from our collection from cleaning products to storage

Shop smarter 

If you're trying to reduce your plastic use, we can help. Our online shop has lots of plastic alternatives. Go green with our ethical utensils and supplies, including bamboo travel cups, reusable drinking straws and plastic-free food bags. Every purchase you make goes back into supporting conservation work.

Pink Bottles of washing detergent wash up on Poldhu

Five ways you can join us in the fight against plastic 

Do you want to help protect the places you love from plastic pollution? It's not too late to join the revolution. We've made positive changes to reduce plastic waste and so can you. Read these five plastic-busting tips and get inspired.

Gardener picking leeks from the Kitchen Garden at Felbrigg Hall, Norfolk.

Top kitchen gardens to visit 

Some of the sustainable and seasonal produce grown in our kitchen gardens is used in the delicious dishes made fresh in our cafés every day. Come and see how a reduction in food miles and packaging can taste just that much sweeter.

What's in season?

Not only will choosing to grow seasonal veg make for some truly tasty meals, this way of gardening works with nature as the seasons change. Here's what's in season in early spring to get the taste buds tingling.

  • Spring green cabbage
  • Savoy cabbage
  • Cauliflower
  • Leeks
  • Kale
  • Celeriac
  • Radicchio
  • Pak choi
  • Purple sprouting broccoli

Check back soon for what's in season this summer.

Growing food to work with nature

Freshly picked produce in a wheelbarrow in the Kitchen Garden at Felbrigg Hall, Norfolk.

Seasonal food and growing 

We've put together a month-by-month guide to help you transform your garden or allotment. Home-grown food is something that we've been championing for quite some time, so read on to find out when it's best to grow your own favourite fruit and vegetables.

Children winding runner beans on bamboo supports in the garden at Kingston Lacy, Dorset

Help a plant grow 

Helping a plant grow could be the first step to your very own seasonal fruit and veg patch, from strawberries and peas to all kinds of herbs like basil and thyme. It's also one of the 50 things to do before you're 11¾.

Squash, balsamic onions and walnut bruschetta

Recipes to season up your plate 

There are some great recipes to prove that seasonal veg can go a long way. Make something tasty for your loved ones and reduce your food miles with some of our favourite seasonal recipes, including something for vegetarians and vegans.

Gull chicks, Farne Islands, Northumberland

Why stop there? 

With a whole year packed full of ideas and inspiration to help you on your way, you don't have to stick to just one promise.

Find more ways to help nature