We’re constantly being warned about climate change, plastic pollution and the state of the planet on the TV, in newspapers, magazines and online but rarely are we given permanent, pro-active solutions and ways to improve the state of the planet with such reports. We’re proud to say that with Hirestreet through renting, you can look great whilst saving the planet and your wallet, but we want to help you help the planet in other ways as well. We’ve made you a list of our favourite apps that help promote sustainable and healthy living, so… Go forth and become a green goddess!
As advocates for a circular economy, we love the reGAIN app. If you do choose not to rent something and do want to buy something new this app helps you do it in a sustainable way. By packing unwanted clothes into boxes and bags you can take them to a range of drop off points where they are then recycled and reused rather than sent to landfill, in return you receive coupons and discount for your recycling efforts for numerous retailers and businesses.
Helping you to make more informed buying decisions this app guides you towards more sustainable products through a rigorous chemical testing process from authoritative sources. It reviews everything from cosmetics and skincare to household products and baby products, allowing you to discover harmful ingredients, see where the product came from and also find out the transparency of manufacturers and all you have to do is scan the barcode.
If food waste were a country it would be the third largest emitter of greenhouse gases after China and the US and in the UK alone 10 million tonnes of food are wasted every year. With Love Food Hate Waste’s app, you are provided with helpful tips and tricks and over 350 recipes to help you cut down and food waste and quite frankly make some amazing dishes. Arancini balls made from leftover Risotto, we’re pointing at you (who knew leftover food and stale bread could taste so good).
Another brilliant food waste app, this highlights the issue of waste from restaurants, not just on a culinary level but from the time and effort spent by chefs making food. With partners such as Yo! Sushi, Patisserie Valerie and Lola’s Cupcakes you can pick from an amazing range of eateries where you can pick up a ‘magic bag’ with food that hasn’t been eaten that day for a fraction of the cost.
We all know the benefits of a vegetarian or vegan diet, and we’re not asking you to go cold turkey (excuse the pun), but the difference made by having one vegetarian day a week is astounding. If everyone went veggie for one day, greenhouse gas emissions would reduce by 1.2 million tonnes, which is equivalent to taking more than half a million cars off the roads. This is where Happy Cow comes in; with over 100,000 restaurants and café’s worldwide it locates the tastiest places to eat in all corners of the world. One user even found a restaurant in a remote region of Hawaii completely unexpectedly. Amazing.
Built from an award-winning team of Nobel Prize scientists, tech geniuses, gamers, artists and creative educators, Oroeco have built an app that can be personalised to your lifestyle to help you be more sustainable and healthier, saving you money and helping to reduce pollution. Through gamification and social aspects on the app, you can win rewards and discounts you can use at real world retailers as well as general tips on sustainable living.
You’ve woken up this morning, used your bamboo toothbrush, packed your overnight oats into a reusable jar and off you go. You’re out on your lunch break shopping and realise that you haven’t filled your water bottle and can’t find anywhere to fill it up… which means you’ll have to buy a plastic bottle. You were doing so well in your quest to quash plastic pollution! Oh wait, you have Refill – it shows you every location in the country you can refill your water and also tells you how many bottles and CO2 emissions you’ve saved as well as money. Neat.
If you’re into your Hello Fresh and graze boxes, this app might be the one for you. Supporting small businesses by delivering fresh food from local independent farmers and producers by electric car so that you can cook up delicious, nutritious dishes. After all, buying local is buying better. Run by passionate and caring individuals has resulted in this app being the highest rated online supermarket in the UK.
Remember the Iceland advert that got banned last Christmas, the one with the orangutan on palm oil cultivation destroying our rainforests? By scanning the barcode with this app, you can discover specific products palm oil ratings and therefore make more considered choices when it comes to products containing palm oil. We love how it understands that each company is on a journey towards sustainability and aims to celebrate those that are already doing well and encourage those that aren’t to try that little bit harder.
Written by Victoria Mcewan
