Zero waste stores in the USA are popping up all over the country. This movement started in Europe about a decade ago and has now reached the US. Zero-waste grocery stores are gathering momentum because they promote sustainability, environmental awareness, and community growth.
Americans waste about 150,000 tons of food each day, and 2.12 billion tons of food go to waste globally. Zero-waste grocery stores tackle this issue by ensuring that the food they sell gets eaten and reused. These stores sell only unpackaged products and have a wide range of products on their shelves. In this article, we’ll look at some of the zero-waste stores in the US.
Fun fact: The first zero-waste grocery store, Unpackaged, was established by Catherine Conway in 2006 in London.
12 Best Zero Waste Stores in the US
1. Package Free – New York City
Package Free, situated in New York City, offers hundreds of plastic-free products beginning at $1.50. We advise starting with one of the Zero Waste Kits tailored to your specific requirements, such as dishwashing, shaving, or even cocktails. With global delivery accessible, you can order the low-waste items you need from anywhere, at any time.
2. EcoRoots
Changing to a plastic-free lifestyle? EcoRoots has you covered. This Colorado-based company provides zero-waste items for the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom. Looking for a calming chamomile facial mist for delicate skin? Do you know what would be great? A zero-waste shaving kit. You can get anything you need right here.
3. Wild Minimalist
This family-run business, inspired by its founders’ experience spent trekking across the globe, supplies practically everything you need for a zero-waste lifestyle. Wild Minimalist features cleaning supplies. They are best for hardwood brushes, loofahs, and brooms—many of which have hundreds of five-star reviews—for zero-waste cleaning. You can put your trust in their packaging. It’s recyclable and biodegradable.
4. Marley’s Monsters
Marley’s Monsters, founded by a waste-conscious mama-to-be, creates hundreds of wood- and fabric-based things with sustainability and simplicity in the heart. All goods are proudly handcrafted in Oregon, including the company’s best-selling UNPaper toilet paper, cloth napkins, and reusable face masks. Also important is affordability: most goods vary from $5 to $20. Everything else arrives plastic-free.
5. The Earthling Co.
The Earthling Co.’s shampoo and soap bars are a popular way to switch to more sustainable hair care. The plant-based bars are made in the USA and sent to you without any unnecessary plastic packaging, and a percentage of the company’s profits go toward global environmental causes. Dish brushes, reusable produce bags, and bamboo toothbrushes are just a few of the many zero-waste products offered by the company.
6. Net Zero Co.
Spend much time in the kitchen? Try looking for Net Zero Co.’s eco-friendly food preparation, storage, and beverage choices. Our favorites are reusable sealer bags, stainless steel lunch sets, and even bubble tea mason jars. In addition, you can choose a package to optimize your financial and environmental impact. Net Zero also contributes a percentage of its profits to the Eden Reforestation Projects, an organization that plants trees across the globe.
7. RE-Grocery – California
Re Grocery is a Los Angeles-based store that sells wholesale online and in-store commodities. Everything from herbs, cereals, legumes, and spices to sweets and personal care items is available for purchase. You can also place an order online for in-store pickup; delivery is available to specific areas in Los Angeles. Their orders are delivered in biodegradable paper bags made from 100% post-consumer recycled material. They also offer reusable containers and bags on their website.
8. BYO LONG – California
BYO Long Beach’s mission is to provide sustainable solutions to a community aware of and concerned about the effect of single-use plastics. They want to educate people about reusable items and make modest efforts toward a more ecologically responsible future. Their shop offer dried flowers, herbs, spices, cleaning supplies, bath and personal care goods, and some very odd items such as charcoal water filter sticks and organic cocoa butter.
9. Scoop Marketplace – Washington
Scoop seeks to reduce waste and plastic consumption by providing sustainable and zero-waste alternatives for food, household goods, and personal care products. In addition, they offer starter kits for anyone wishing to embark on a zero-waste path, as well as memberships that provide access to exclusive prices and sustainable guidelines and resources. As a company, they want to reduce their waste in all facets, ranging from production to disposal.
10. The Waste Less Shop – California
The Waste Less Shop is a zero-waste online and brick-and-mortar store that allows shoppers to discover sustainable, inexpensive, high-quality, non-toxic, and even woman-made daily items. Their Manhattan Beach refill station is a service-based location where you can bring your containers or buy from them to replenish your waste-free home supplies.
11. Utility – Oregon
The Utility is the first zero-waste store in Portland, Oregon. They provide a variety of eco-friendly and plastic-free items, such as natural deodorant, shampoo and conditioner, stain sticks, and more. In addition to producing their line of goods, they also source goods from the surrounding region. Utility shares space with Coy & Co., a zero-waste flower store, decreasing waste in all forms, including water, power, and energy.
12. Ecoternatives
Ecoternatives is an online zero-waste store founded by a group of young people who want to improve the planet via ethical business methods. They recognize that many businesses prioritize money over people and the environment, and they want to put change the trend. When developing a new product or concept, they constantly consider what is best for the environment rather than what would generate the most significant profit.
Author’s Note
Now that you understand how zero-waste grocery stores work, the next big question is probably which store to shop from and how to start these stores in your area. By shopping at stores offering the products you need, you help the environment by lowering your carbon footprint and minimizing the amount of waste you produce. Smart shopping also helps your neighborhood economy as you spend money within the community instead of outside it.
