Zero Waste Mother’s Day Gifts and Ideas

Mother’s Day (or Mothering Sunday) is all about celebrating some of the most important women in our lives and the sacrifices they make for their children. Aside from the two billion mums around the world, there’s another matriarchal figure that deserves plenty of respect on this day – Mother Earth.

Celebrating Mother’s Day as a child or mother might not reach the same level of excess as Christmas, but it still creates plenty of waste. In the UK we spend around £1.3 billion for Mother’s Day every year. The good news is that around a third of people aim to buy ethically sourced or sustainable presents, according to Forbes.

Choosing zero and low-waste gifts shows Mother Earth and your own mum, step-mum, aunty, grandma, or anyone else that you care. Discover ways to celebrate Mother’s Day sustainably this year, whether you’re planning something special for your mum or are a mother yourself.

It’s the thought that counts – and zero waste Mother’s Day gifts show plenty of consideration for the planet as well as your mum. They help avoid adding to general waste and landfill once the present and any packaging is used. Always try to buy packaging-free products or at least in recyclable packaging.

Here are some more ideas for sustainable zero waste Mother’s Day gifts:

• Handpicked garden flowers – supermarket flowers can have a high carbon footprint and come with thin plastic bags and packaging that’s hard to recycle. If you’ve got a garden then consider picking some from it. This is sustainable as you can easily plant more, and they should last for longer.
• Potted plants – flowers only last a couple of weeks but a potted plant like a succulent or cactus should last for years. Avoid those in plastic pots or with excess packaging though. You could always decorate an old jam jar or food tin and upcycle it as a personalised plant pot.
• Tickets – is your mum a fan of the theatre, music, comedy, ballet, musicals, or sports? Then buying a couple of tickets to an event she’d love is an easy way to make her day and avoid creating any unnecessary waste. Most tickets are online now, so there’s not even any paper waste.
• Sustainable subscription services – many modern subscription services send out a monthly item, such as coffee, wine, make-up, or books. Packaging for most of these products can be recycled and items like books passed on. Some services may even offer a takeback option to eliminate waste.

As a mother, you’ve little control over what gifts you might receive. Even when buying presents for your own mum, it’s almost impossible for everything to be packaging-free. How you dispose of it can reduce its environmental impact though. Here’s how to get rid of some common waste you might create this Mothering Sunday:

• Flowers – once your flowers have wilted and can’t be revived you should either add them to a compost heap or dispose of them in a garden waste bin.
• Card – as long as there’s no glitter, plastic, or metallic foil, you can recycle most Mother’s Day cards in your household recycling bin.
• Wrapping paper – do the scrunch test (squeeze it into a ball and if it doesn’t unfurl then it should be recyclable).
• Gift bags and boxes – save any gift bags and boxes to reuse for other birthdays and celebrations. Some charity shops may also accept them. Otherwise, if they’re made from paper or card you should be able to put them in your domestic recycling bin.
• Chocolate boxes – once you’ve munched through the chocolates you can normally recycle the box in your household recycling bin. If there’s a plastic tray, check the plastic type and if your local authority accepts and recycles it (otherwise it may have to go in your general waste bin).
• Wine bottles – ensure the bottles are empty (a tough ask!), rinse them out, and drop them off at your nearest bottle bank to be recycled.