Five Top Tips For A Green Kitchen (NAPSA)—When it comes to going green, experts suggest start- Ht) ing with what you know. So with most people spending more waking hours in their kitchen than any other room of the house, it can be the perfect place to start going green. “A few simple changes in your kitchen routine can have a positive impact on the environment and your pocketbook,” said Ginny Bean, founder of Ginny’s catalog and www.Ginnys.com. Among Bean’s top tips for a greener kitchen: 1. Buy in bulk. Avoid overly packaged andsingle-serving items in favor of large packages. Divide contents into individual or familysize servings and store in washable containers with lids instead of plastic wrap or aluminum foil. An in-home meat slicer saves packaging waste and money and avoids the high nitrites and fat content of prepackaged deli meats. 2. Drink clean. Removelead, chlorine and other impurities from your tap water with a faucetmounted waterfilter. Save money over buying bottled water, and reduce the pollution created by manufacturing, shipping and dis- posingofall those plastic containers. Ginny’s 20,000-gallon water filter is designed to provide clean, fresh water for up to five years, eliminating the hassle and cost of replacing standard 40-gallon cartridges. 3. Compost food scraps. Throwing food into the trash wastes a valuable resource. Turn coffee grounds, banana peels and eggshells into a rich soil condi- tioner for your garden and house- plants by composting them. Keep a small crock or bucket near your A few simple changesin kitchen routines can result in significant savings to the environment and your pocketbook. food prep area to collect waste, then add the contents to an outside compost bin. 4, Use cloth dishtowels. The manufacturing of single-use paper towels is twice as energy intensive and creates more greenhouse gases than years of machine washing dishtowels. To be truly eco-friendly, throw dirty dish towels in with full-size loads of other laundry, wash with cold water and line dry when weather permits. 5. Heat just what you need. Small appliances are moreeffi- cient than big ones. For cooking modest portions or heating left- overs, a microwave or toaster oven uses less energy than a full-sized stove. Ginny’s Toaster Oven/ Rotisserie and Countertop Convection Oven (both priced at under $100) have the capacity to cook a whole chicken at a fraction of the energy cost of a conven- tional oven. To request a copy of Ginny’s catalog, visit www.Ginnys.com or call (800) 487-9024.
