How you can barter all the excess produce you've grown

You're feeling like an accomplished farmer. You've read up on how to grow micro-greens in your home and your balcony is packed with palettes that you've repurposed into vertical garden beds. It's all gone swimmingly (congratulations!).

You've made our rice-less cauliflower risotto with shitake and spinach , butternut pumpkin winter soup, and kale, sage, and walnut pesto. But still have 3 laundry baskets full of lemons/chokos/potatoes that no one in your social circle wants to take off your hands.

Instead of letting it all literally fall to the ground, why not try and barter some of your excess produce.

[Image https://instagram.com/cornersmith/]

Sydney's Cornersmith and Melbourne's Rhubarb Wholefoods have introduced a bartering option; patrons can offer up their excess home grown food in exchange for pickles, cordials, cakes, and coffee.

[Image https://instagram.com/cornersmith/]

But I'm not in Melbourne or Sydney!

No stress, Australian start-up RipeNearMe connects people with locally grown produce all over the nation. RipeNearMe allows users to post and pick excess produce from people in their area; some of it is even free!

Buying local means cutting down on the food miles and the excess packaging of your meal. It also means you're more likely to get vegetables of the quirkier variety, like this ice-cream bean.

Best of all, you'll be helping to avoid any precious food from going to waste.

[Image www.milkwood.net]

READ THIS NEXT: How to keep fruit and vegetables fresh without using plastic

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Add this activity to your low-carbon living dashboard below, and start tracking your progress on reducing pollution by cutting down CO2 emissions from the food supply chain in areas including transport and processing.