THRIFTY LIVING
Being green and saving green often go hand-in-hand
Jim Baumann is being engulfed by plastic.
Empty computer ink cartridges are stacked and sorted in boxes piled to the ceiling, even overflowing out into the lobby of the Union Road store where he greets customers and does business.
But if they weren’t here, they’d be in a landfill.
Maybe that environmental benefit is why customers bring their old ink cartridges to Cartridge World to be repaired and and refilled rather than buying new ones.
Or maybe they just like to save money.
Baumann’s remanufactured cartridges are up to 50 percent cheaper than brand new ones and work every bit as well, customers said.
Either way, it’s an example of how environmental and economic concerns have begun to converge.
Folks in a tightened economy are finding that being green and saving green often go hand-in-hand.
After all, “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle” is not just a credo for environmental responsibility, it can also apply as tenets of thrifty living.
“Some people say, ‘I’m not going to chain myself to a tree, but if it’s going to help the environment, I’m going to do it,’ ” said Baumann, president of Cartridge World Buffalo, a company that “re-purposes” empty ink cartridges.
“And why buy new ink cartridges when all you need is new ink?”
Whether they’re motivated by environmental concerns or financial ones, more and more Western New Yorkers are getting back to basics, saving the planet and some money in the process.
Household cleaners
Many folks are finding they don’t need to spend lots of money on fancy cleaning products, when the ones that work best can already be found in their kitchen cupboards.
Products like baking soda, vinegar, lemon and water are abundant and inexpensive, and can be used in place of traditional cleaners. Since they’re not usually marketed as house cleaners, buyers don’t pay for expensive advertising campaigns or product branding.
In many cases natural cleaners and deodorizers are more environmentally sound, as they don’t contain harmful chemicals that contribute to pollution and can irritate skin and eyes.
According to studies by the Environmental Protection Agency, exposure to chemical cleaning products and air fresheners can cause indoor air pollution that can actually make you sick. To boot, natural cleaners usually contain less complex packaging, which means there’s less waste.
Medicines
The same can be said for expensive pharmaceutical products.
The rising cost of drugs, especially for seniors, has been making headlines as consumers sacrifice to afford the medicine they need to keep them healthy or free from pain. And that’s leading some patients to look for less expensive alternatives.
“People are getting tired of conventional methods and are looking for other ways to take care of themselves,” said Vincent Caradonna, owner of HoneyTree Health Shoppe in North Tonawanda.
Caradonna said sales of nutritional supplements are “definitely on the upswing” as consumers look for natural ways to make themselves well.
There has also been more interest in regulating the body through nutrition, exercise and meditation.
Food and dining
Dining at home and making your own coffee are at the top of every how-to list on saving money.
And it just so happens, both are also much better for the environment than take-out dinners and coffee to go.
Hordes of coffee drinkers are trading in their $5 lattes for coffee brewed at home. Consumers are realizing even with specialty blends, they can brew a whole pot at home for less than the price of one take-out coffee and save on wasteful packaging and to-go containers at the same time.
Even as other retail categories suffer, stores have reported increased sales of cookbooks, cooking magazines, inexpensive cookware and food ingredients within the last few months as consumers turn away from expensive dinners out.
Local wine and liquor sales have gotten a boost, too, and they’ll keep doing so, according to Burt Flickinger III, managing director of the consulting firm Strategic Research Group.
“Sales of wine will continue to rise as consumers do more entertaining at home,” he said in a recent interview.
Akin to the idea of returning to the hearth in tough times is the idea of returning to a sense of community, said Tim Bartlett, general manager of the Lexington Real Foods Community Coop on Elmwood Avenue.
“When we feel insecure we like to retreat to the comfort of the community,” he said, noting the Co-op has seen strong growth in sales recently.
That’s making an impact in other ways, as consumers band together in co-operative local buying clubs to buy staple food and supplies in large quantities.
In fact, buying in bulk is another popular way to save money on purchases that is environmentally efficient as well. A lack of complicated packaging cuts down not only on the price, but on waste and pollution.
Sales of generic items are up as well. Some generic cereals, for example, come with less packaging — in a sealed bag, as opposed to the traditional bag-within-box mode.
Bartlett said the trends toward financial and environmental frugality are a natural shift toward becoming a more content society, and the mantra “less is more” is leading both movements.
“When people make more mindful decisions about how they’re spending their money or how they are impacting the Earth, that mindfulness translates into other parts of their life,” he said. “It changes what you buy, how much you buy, the way you live your life.”
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