Conscious consumption: Using consumer purchasing power to benefit the planet

Earth Day Canada is urging Canadians to be “conscious” consumers, which means they consider how their food purchasing decisions can help bring benefits to the environment. IVan Pantic via getty images

Earth Day is celebrated on April 22 each year to raise awareness about environmental challenges and motivate individual and community action to build a more sustainable planet. First marked in the U.S. in 1970, Earth Day went international in 1990, with Canada among the countries that year to join the global environmental movement.

“Conscious consumption” is the theme of Earth Day Canada’s 2026 campaign. The organization aims to remind Canadians that they have the power to help heal the planet through simple, everyday choices and actions, at both an individual and collective level.

“Conscious consumption encourages us to consume less, but better, in order to reduce our impact on the planet while improving our quality of life, without necessarily implying deprivation,” says Earth Day Canada’s campaign website. “In a context of growing pressure on natural resources and ecosystems, conscious consumption emerges as a concrete, positive and accessible response.”

One key aspect of conscious consumption is the issue of food waste. According to Environment and Climate Change Canada, “Globally, there is growing consensus that we need to take action to address food loss and waste. Food that is produced but not eaten ends up in landfills and creates methane, a powerful greenhouse gas.”

Research by Canada’s largest food rescue organization, Second Harvest, has quantified the scale of food waste across the country. In The Avoidable Crisis of Food Waste: Update, published in October 2024, Second Harvest reported the following:

46.5 %

Of all food in Canada is wasted

41.7 %

Of this food could be redirected to support Canadians

$58 B

The total value of avoidable food waste every year

Second Harvest rescues unsold surplus food from thousands of food businesses from across the supply chain to redistribute it to non-profits in every province and territory. The benefits: reducing the level of greenhouse gases that enter the atmosphere and improving access to nutrition for millions of Canadians experiencing food insecurity.

One of the businesses that partners with Second Harvest to help fulfill its mission is Healthy Planet, a health and wellness retail chain with 43 stores across Ontario.

“Empowering our customers to make choices to benefit the environment is at the core of everything we do,” says Muhammad Mohamedy, general manager of Healthy Planet. “That includes giving them opportunities to support food waste reduction and to purchase sustainable, locally sourced products wherever possible.”

In the 12 months ending in October 2025, Healthy Planet donated healthy food items to Second Harvest valued at around $280,000 – the equivalent to 62,425 meals. From the environmental perspective, these donations helped divert 171,842.14 lbs. of greenhouse gases from entering the atmosphere.

Another recent initiative to fight against food waste and food insecurity was Healthy Planet’s Good Food Drive in late summer last year, to coincide with the back-to-school season. The company donated 300,000 non-GMO, kid-friendly ingredients to local food banks to help support the health and well-being of children in need.

Healthy Planet has also tackled the food waste issue through a partnership with Good to Go, an app that allows customers to purchase unsold food items that are close to their “best before” dates at reduced prices. “We have expanded this partnership this year, and Good to Go is now available at most of our stores. By giving a ‘second life’ to unsold food that is still good to eat, we are not only helping the environment but giving our customers a chance to try new products while saving money.”

Carbon footprint reduction

Healthy Planet has focused on local sustainability as one of the key pillars of its business, sourcing its products locally wherever possible and promoting Canadian-made products.

“Adding new local suppliers continues to be one of our top priorities,” says Mr. Mohamedy. “Local production means reduced shipping times and fuel consumption, leading to a significantly reduced carbon footprint,” he says “We are also helping local businesses to grow; a lot of them start with us and expand to become widely available brands.”

Healthy Planet also contributes to carbon compensation efforts through reforestation projects with Tree Canada, a non-profit focused on planting and caring for trees in both rural and urban areas nationwide to help mitigate climate change.

For 2026, Healthy Planet donated 2,490 trees to be planted in some of Canada’s most needed areas. This donation will be matched by the Government of Canada through the 2 Billion Trees Program, bringing the total number of trees planted to 4,980.

Another way that customers can consume consciously is to choose among Healthy Planet’s range of Fair Trade-certified products, as well as items that use recyclable or otherwise eco-friendly packaging.

“We reinforce to our customers that they have the ability to take action on a small scale through everyday purchases and choices and contribute to big-scale and meaningful impacts for the health of the planet,” Mr. Mohamedy says.

To view this report on The Globe's website, visit globeandmail.com

To view the full report as it appeared in The Globe's print edition Earth Day