We all love Christmas, but the season of high consumption and plentiful decorations can easily lead to a few things that aren't good for our precious planet! Among the wonderful carols, scrumptious food, merry and cheer, see what you can do to be eco-friendly this Christmas by checking out a few of these tips!

Recycle Gift Packaging – It’s a really great idea to be eco-friendly when you're wrapping your presents. When you receive presents this year too, ensure that what your gifts are wrapped in is recycled after you've removed it. Either use them to re-wrap presents the next year, or if they've been ripped to shreds mid excitement by your little ones, ensure that the packaging is recycled properly and not just thrown away.

Sales, Sales, Sales – When Boxing Day sales begin, it is very tempting to buy many bargains in stores and online, but ensure you keep your eyes peeled for items of high quality that are also eco-friendly, such as Bamboo. Look out for our Boxing Day sales beginning December 26^th!

Buy Local - Unless you buy organic meat at Christmas, the bird that will be sitting in the centre of your table will most likely have been reared in an intensive factory farm. Instead, buy your meat and veg locally, such as a local farmers market where you're buying directly from the farmer. This is actually also cheaper than buying organic at the supermarket. Not only do you then ensure chemical free food, you're helping to reduce mileage and CO2 emissions brought on by the transportation to stores. Buying local also helps out rural employment in your community - bonus!

Ditch the expensive decor - Instead of spending lots of money on artificial Christmas decor that tugs at the purse strings, why not let nature decorate your home? Things like natural holly and berries draped over your stairs and mantelpiece are a wonderful alternative to store bought goods. For next year too, why not plan on growing your own tree in your garden? Plastic trees produce a lot of fossil fuels when they're being made, so naturally grown ones are much better for the environment.

Reduce the leftovers - When planning the Christmas food, ensure to buy only what you know you will need. If there are a few leftovers, either use them for sandwiches or a similar meal the next day, or compost what you can. Several billion tons of food is wasted every Christmas, so it is worth being vigilant with what you're buying to prevent plates from being left with food on them.

Use an eco-bag - When you're shopping for your Christmas food or a few last minute presents, don't grab the carrier bags that are given away to carry your shopping. Instead, take your own eco bag. Over Christmas, over a million plastic bags are used each second as Christmas goods are packed away. Imagine how much good it would do if everyone switched to eco-bags instead?

We’d love to know what you do to stay eco-friendly over Christmas!