Make a difference to the planet with your shopping, cooking and living habits.
Follow Nicole Senior's green tips for a lifestyle that's good for the environment...

The green shopper

• Buy local rather than imported food to reduce 'food miles' (see glossary, below).
• Purchase products with less packaging.
• Reduce food waste - buy and eat only what you need.
• Buy organic if you can - it's usually less resource-intensive and more sustainable.
• A new country-of-origin labelling standard from Food Standards Australia and New Zealand means you can now determine if your food is local or imported. This includes unpackaged fruit, vegetables, nuts and seafood.

The green cook

• Microwaves use less power than ovens and can be used to cook, as well as reheating and defrosting.
• Put cold food containers such as milk cartons back in the fridge immediately after use. The fridge won't have to work as hard to cool them again.
• Match the saucepan to the stove burner size. Use the lowest possible heat setting.
• Cook in bulk, freeze leftovers and reheat in the microwave to save time and energy.
• Save power by switching off your kitchen appliances at the wall.

Cool and green

• Ensure fridge seals are kept in good condition, to avoid losing cold air.
• Keep heat sources such as ovens, etc. away from fridges and freezers - these make the fridge work harder.
• Fridges generally use the most energy in the home. Old fridges are the worst, so that old clunker is costing the earth to run.
• If you're using the oven during hot weather, close the kitchen door so as not to heat up the whole house and make the air conditioner or fan work overtime.

Liquid green

• Use biodegradable and low-phosphate detergents in the laundry and kitchen.
• Consider installing water-efficient taps - triple A-rated taps use 50% less water.
• Don't tip oil or grease down the sink - pour into an empty milk carton or jar and place in the bin.
• Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth - this saves around 5 litres of water each time.

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Green glossary

Food miles. The distance food travels from the grower to you. The longer the distance, the more fossil fuels are used in transportation.

Greenhouse gases. These are natural and man-made gases in the atmosphere which keep the Earth at a liveable temperature.

Global warming. Excess greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, especially carbon dioxide, are accelerating a rise in the Earth's temperature.

Fossil fuels. These include oil, coal and gas that create carbon dioxide when
burned to generate power.

Carbon footprint. Your household greenhouse gas contribution.

Organic Crops. grown without synthetic pesticides and fertilisers.

Green power. Renewable energy sourced from the sun, water, wind and waste.

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Nicole Senior is an Accredited Nutritionist, consultant, editor, author, writer, speaker, blogger and social networker. This article first appeared in Super Food Ideas Magazine.