Don’t “consume”… at the intermediate/advanced level, think about NOT buying stuff, rather than “eco” swaps which are mainly just greenwash marketing. Buy or do the simplest thing possible.
So, say, for household cleaning, buy a cheapo bottle of stardrops, decant some into an empty spray bottle then top up with water. Or get boxes of citric acid/bicarb/washing soda crystals + elbow grease.
Shampoo - I’ve given up using even Lush shampoo bars/refills of Faith in Nature, now I just wash my hair with soft water (rainwater or from dehumidifier with my head over the bath). Transition takes longer than the stated 6 weeks, but if you start in the autumn, you can mostly get away with a hat for a few months or hair stick and bun.
Other toiletries - I just use bar soap, toothbrush, floss, smudge of 30p Morrisons value toothpaste, and a shake of bicarb on a damp facecloth for deodorant.
Food:
Vegetables - from local organic farm at local market. They have a mixture of their own stuff, other local producers plus more exotic stuff like bananas & avocados bought in from wholesalers.
Fruit - from our own fruit trees. I let the brambles grow a bit in the garden and pick the blackberries. Sometimes buy bags of frozen berries from Aldi (much better value than the fresh plastic punnets). Other than that I don’t eat much fruit, as so much of it is imported on planes/container ships and stored in massive temperature controlled warehouses for weeks, requiring a huge industrial and fossil fuel infrastructure.
Meat - from local butchers - all local and pastured. Contrary to prevailing narratives, pastureland used for raising ruminants is actually a net carbon sink… it sequesters more carbon in the deep root systems of the grasses than the animals emit. Plus row cropping of annual grain and legume monocrops, which are the mainstay of a plant based diet decimate soil integrity and all the carbon and nutrients it contains. They require vast amounts of ecocidal and fossil fuel based fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides and insecticides. More and more biologists are realising what a catastrophe glyphosate is for the human gut microbiome, soil microbiology and plant and animal health. Grasslands and ruminants are integral to one another and are essential for restoring topsoil, sequestering carbon and developing regenerative agriculture for perennial human food production. Read The Vegetarian Myth by Lierre Keith and Sacred Cow by Diana Rodgers for a different perspective on meat in regenerative food systems.
Milk - unpasteurised organic pastured jersey milk in glass bottles from local dairy farmer. Also get yoghurt and eggs from them.
Supermarkets - try and minimise my spends in there to a bare minimum. I try to get yellow sticker stuff to save stuff from waste, then just get very basic groceries like passata, coffee beans, tea etc and cook from scratch.
I take my own tubs to the butchers and produce bags to the market, so that’s all zero plastic.
Basically I eat a place based diet rather than a plant based diet.
Clothes - Ebay/Vinted/Charity shop. I’m trying to not buy things I don’t need at the moment and am decluttering, as I have too much stuff. Humans only need a couple of each clothing item - one on, a couple in the washing basket - anything else is fashion, and that’s a catastrophe for the planet - toxic dyes, pesticides, sweatshop labour etc. I now go for practical, long lasting brands second hand, rather than fashionable. I also use a darning mushroom to mend holes in socks/tops etc.
Utilities - take meter readings every day to keep a close eye on usage. Avoid excess use, eg by turning off the shower while soaping up, only filling the kettle to the level required, lids on saucepans etc. In winter, only set the heating to 16 - 17°C and wear a cosy jumper, wool socks and wrist warmers.
Tech - I have an ancient iPhone 6, which I’m not intending to upgrade for a while yet. Though it does need a new battery, which I’m loath to get, as lithium mining is catastrophic for the indigenous people and nature in Mongolia and the border lands of Argentina/Bolivia/Chile. I’ll likewise hold off upgrading my laptop for as long as possible, and may consider going tech-free at that stage, Mark Boyle style.
Data usage - this is a HUGE impact on global energy supplies, so try to delete as many emails as possible, reduce my online footprint, lessen social media use etc. I don’t use Netflix, but I do have a rather big Youtube habit, so I click on the little cog icon and reduce the screen resolution quality to around 360, which is fine for most discussions/presentations. Likewise, I won’t buy bitcoin etc as the energy costs of all that virtual mining is humongous. When blockchain/internet of things is rolled out more and more, I intend to be much more of a tech refusenik.