When I began my journey on a sustainable lifestyle, I had to take a step back and evaluate where I could eliminate waste in my life. The big picture items like buying from small or ethical brands or recycling and composting are easy to see. It’s the small things that will really trip you up though; the little things that you do everyday or once in awhile that comes so naturally you don’t even consider it until you take a moment to evaluate it. I’ve been on this journey for years now and I still come across things like this. One prime example of this is candy. We don’t think much of it because it’s so minute. We eat it or give it away within a split second and move on with our lives. But when you take a step back and re-evaluate it, you’ll notice that candy is huge contributor to waste primarily because of the packaging alone. So what do you do in this situation? Well, obviously you can’t ban it entirely because nearly all major holidays involve it and because it’s just so darn delicious. But here’s what you can always do: find an alternative! Here’s my list of candy alternatives to suit that sweet craving of yours!
Bulk Candy
Buying in bulk is an obvious first choice. You can bring your own bag and purchase only what you will eat, limiting the packaging and food waste. The main issue with this is that there’s limited places where you can find places that sell candy in bulk. Places like IKEA, Whole Foods, Sprouts, and even local shops are fantastic places to start!
Paper Box Wrapped Candy
I love giving candy away, especially during Halloween. It makes me so happy when trick-or-treaters come to my door. So imagine my devastation when I realized how candy packaging and one of the holidays I look forward to each year contributes to so much waste. For a little while, I stopped giving out candy altogether. It wasn’t feasible where I lived previously nor did I have any alternatives. Yes, you can buy bulk but how would I give it away to another individual or a child? It would still need some form of packaging for safety and hygienic reasons. So I did my research and settled on purchasing candy that comes packaged in paper boxes. These candies included Nerds, Hot Tamales, Lemon Heads, Junior Mints, and Milk Duds! Definitely, still, a great selection and it’s much more sustainable than plastic packaging.
While the candy mentioned above is great and all, I’m still a sucker for a good piece of rich chocolate. After doing some research, I discovered Alter Eco. They specialize in chocolate bars, truffles, and clusters. All of their candy is made with organic, non-GMO, and clean ingredients. To make things even sweeter, their candy packaging is plant-based and compostable, making it the first of its kind! I highly recommend you check out the salted caramel truffles!
This is another great company that specializes in chocolate! Not only is this company sweet in taste but also in their practices. With each jcoco purchase, a portion of the sale goes to providing fresh food to local food banks in Washington, California, and New York. The company also promotes sustainability by sourcing their ingredients through sustainable farming practices and packaging their products in compostable materials!
Y’all already know how obsessed I am with Thrive. If you aren’t familiar with the company, Thrive specializes in selling thousands of different wholesome products at low prices all while promoting sustainability through carbon-neutral shipping, 100% recyclable packaging, and zero-waste warehouses. My favorite candy from this website has to be the Caramelized Coconut Mylk chocolate bar by Endorfin Foods. Not only is it delicious but it’s perfect if you have dietary restrictions such as gluten or dairy. It’s also organic and preservative-free and the packaging is compostable!