Toronto offers extensive opportunities for environmentally conscious shopping, with a thriving network of zero-waste stores, sustainable brands, and community initiatives dedicated to reducing waste and supporting ethical consumption.
Zero-Waste Grocery & Bulk Stores
The city’s zero-waste grocery movement centers around bring-your-own-container (BYOC) shopping. Unboxed Market at 1263 Dundas Street West is Toronto’s flagship zero-waste grocery store, featuring produce, dried goods, butcher and deli items, cleaning products, and oils with a focus on reducing food waste and container reuse. Other dedicated zero-waste options include bare market (1480 Danforth Ave) for locally sourced body care and bulk foods, Pretty Clean Shop (3072 Dundas St W) with extensive refillable products, and The Green Jar (1061 St Clair Ave W) specializing in package-free personal and home care.
For bulk food shopping, Strictly Bulk operates multiple locations (924 Bloor St W and 638 Danforth Ave), The Big Carrot offers worker-owned natural food markets with bulk sections, and Bulk Barn is Canada’s largest bulk food retailer with numerous city locations. Urban Bulk & Refill (1380 Queen St E) and The Source Bulk Foods (213 Roncesvalles) provide additional bulk options for groceries, soaps, and cleaning products.
Specialized refill services include Less Waste Co. (refill delivery for hair care and cleaning products), RefillMe (mobile refillery with free local delivery over $35), Saponetti (soap refill service at 615c Brock Ave), and The Peeled Pantry (online zero-waste shop with city-wide refill delivery).
Natural & Green Beauty Retailers
Detox Market operates multiple locations plus online shopping, carrying low-waste and zero-waste beauty brands. Anarres Natural Health Apothecary (1076 Bloor St. W) specializes in aromatherapy with DIY workshops and BYOC options, while Essence of Life (50 Kensington Ave) is a large independent natural food market with an excellent green beauty section. Health Hut with several locations stocks natural bath, home, hair, face, and skin products.
Sustainable Clothing & Fashion
Sustainable Fashion Stores: KOTN (754 Queen St West) offers ethically-made quality essentials as a B Corporation. Encircled (300 Campbell Ave) provides Canadian label sustainable pieces by appointment, while Birds of North America (1114 Queen St West) features made-in-Canada clothing with bold designs. Logan & Finley (670 Queen St West) specializes in eco-conscious fashion with focus on sustainable clothing, and Reformation (3401 Dufferin St at Yorkdale Mall) brings the trendy sustainable LA brand to Toronto.
Second-Hand & Vintage: Stella Luna (1627 Queen St West) offers fabulous curated vintage pieces ($30-50, cash only). Courage My Love (14 Kensington Ave) features vintage and upcycled clothes in Kensington Market, while Value Village with multiple locations offers affordable vintage options. Double Take Thrift Store (Gerrard St East) provides pre-loved and vintage clothing with proceeds supporting Yonge Street Mission community programs, featuring an upcycling studio for creative transformation of damaged textiles.
Consignment Options: The Cat’s Meow (180 Avenue Rd) specializes in vintage designer fashion from the ’50s-70s and contemporary luxury labels, while VSP Consignment (1410 Dundas St West) focuses on trendy contemporary labels with online shopping available. Haute Classics (1961 Avenue Road) consigns luxury handbags, shoes, and accessories by appointment.
Rental Services: Fitzroy Rentals (1227 Dundas Street) allows you to rent designer dresses for special occasions in various sizes.
Eco-Friendly Accessories & Gifts
Ecotique (191 Roncesvalles Ave) is a sustainable living boutique showcasing responsibly made goods and Canadian artists with a small bulk refill program. EcoExistence (766 St. Clair Ave W) offers zero-waste, locally made, and sustainable living goods, while Binz (2314 Bloor St W) provides eco-friendly storage, organization, and cleaning products.
Farmers’ Markets & Local Shopping
Evergreen Saturday Farmers Market at the Brick Works is Toronto’s largest farmers’ market with over 100 local vendors within a 205 km radius, supporting 100% local Canadian businesses and reducing food miles. The Stop’s Farmers’ Market operates year-round with over 35 vendors centered on sustainability, ethical labor, and local food, plus a Market Bucks volunteer program. Withrow Park Farmers’ Market pioneered zero-waste initiatives including reusable dishware programs and clothing repair cafés.
Sustainable Shopping Tips
Bring Your Own Containers: The most effective zero-waste strategy is using BYOC. Most stores provide biodegradable paper bags if you forget containers, and you can purchase reusable glass jars in-store. If a store displays a green sticker through the Canada Reduces initiative, they’ve committed to accepting reusable containers.
Support Local & Seasonal: Buying from farmers’ markets reduces carbon footprint from transportation and supports local farmers and businesses. Seasonal produce typically requires fewer resources and arrives fresher. Toronto’s City Council now requires retail businesses to accept reusable beverage cups under the Single-Use and Takeaway Items Bylaw (effective March 2024).
Shop Second-Hand: Thrifting reduces carbon footprint by up to 82% compared to buying new and keeps 11 million tons of annual textile waste out of landfills. Second-hand shopping also provides unique items at lower prices while supporting circular economy principles.
Opt for Sustainable Materials: Look for certifications like Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), Fair Trade, or FSC-certified wood. Products made from bamboo, hemp, or recycled materials have significantly lower environmental impact throughout their lifecycle.
Join Community Programs: Participate in clothing swaps (free fabric swaps and mending events occur regularly throughout Toronto), use platforms like Kijiji, Craigslist, Bunz, Varagge Sale, and Facebook Marketplace for buying and selling used goods, and explore book swaps and repair cafés hosted by farmers’ markets.
Mindful Online Shopping: Double-check your online cart before finalizing purchases to avoid impulse buying and unnecessary items, reducing packaging waste and transportation emissions.
Take-Out Sustainability: Many Toronto restaurants now accept reusable containers under the city’s Single-Use Items Bylaw. Use the Too Good to Go app to purchase surplus food at discounted prices from local businesses, reducing food waste.
By combining these sustainable stores and practices, Toronto residents can significantly reduce their environmental impact while supporting local businesses, ethical brands, and a circular economy.