Shoreline family wins the EcoChallenge Supermarket Sweep at Central Market

Shoppers at Central Market in the Supermarket Sweep contest

In honor of Earth Day, King County and Shoreline Central Market hosted the “EcoConsumer Supermarket Challenge,” a friendly competition to show residents how they can shop smarter in order to reduce waste and bring healthier, safer products into their home.

“We are excited to be part of this effort,” said Tony D’Onofrio, sustainability director for Town & Country Markets, Inc. “We have introduced several new green initiatives in our stores, including compostable trays for meat. Our customers appreciate that we consider the environment in our operations and offer a wide selection of green and healthy products on our shelves.”

On Tuesday, April 17, at Town and Country's Central Market Shoreline, five families competed in this “supermarket sweep.”

• Lilian and Collin Hurn (Renton residents)
• Amparo Squaglia and her husband, Jesse Warwick, and two kids, Jonas & Elena (Shoreline residents)
• Sharon Muza and her two daughters, Sophie and Hannah (Ballard residents)
• Kitty Jones (Shoreline resident)
• Dave Going and his son Lincoln (Shoreline residents)

King County EcoConsumer Tom Watson challenged each family to find eight green items in the store in 10 minutes. Participants were given a shopping list with categories such as produce and paper supplies, with the goal of finding the most eco-friendly products in each category. 

Once shoppers brought back their green finds, Watson picked the winner… Amparo Squaglia and her family! Amparo and her family went through the aisles and found reusable lunch and sandwich bags for the kids which helped to claim the winning prize.

“Our competitors were in search of products that have, for example, less packaging or recycled-content packaging, or are free of harmful chemicals,” said Watson. “We want to let people know how they can shop smart and make choices to benefit the health of their families, and the environment.”

It is estimated that about a third of the solid waste generated in the U.S. is containers and packaging, and only about 40 percent of that is recycled.

This event is part of the 2012 EcoConsumer Zero Waste Earth Day education campaign to raise awareness of the concept of zero waste, which means that materials that have value should not end up in the landfill. The campaign will highlight six areas where individuals can take actions to reduce waste and toxics at home and in their community.

For a full list of ideas and tips for a Zero Waste Earth Day, visit the King County EcoConsumer website.