Like many people, I was shocked to discover the scale of my plastic footprint, so decided to make significant changes to my lifestyle.

After signing up to 'Plastic Free July' in 2017 – where people aim to forego single-use plastics for one month – I've attempted to make it permanent.

Finding affordable alternatives to single-use plastics is a challenge, which has resulted in fewer supermarket shops, replacing these with markets, eco-friendly shops and butchers.

In the face of funny looks, I have needed determination to insist that I do not buy goods wrapped in single-use plastic.

I use a kit of paper bags, reusable shopping bags, jars, bottles, roasting tins and foil – all of which can be washed, reused or recycled infinitely.

Fresh fish is put in a cool box and frozen at home.

Further changes have included:

• refilling my own containers at refill shops such as a Just Trading in Wallingford and SESI at East Oxford Farmers Market - both stock a wide range of dry goods and refillable eco-friendly cleaning products

• taking containers to delis, butchers and fishmongers

• getting milk delivered in reusable glass bottles or making my own nut milk

• shopping at farmers markets and buying fruit and vegetables loose, putting them into a reusable bag

• continually identifying plastic-free products

Making these changes has also made me think more carefully about shopping locally and healthily: I now make more things from scratch including yoghurt (impossible to find yoghurt in glass jars and it's easy to make).

I value the shopping experience and products I buy more than ever.

Compared to the weekly supermarket shop, shopping this way is a joy.

I hope that in future the plastic-free aisle (or supermarket) becomes a reality, as this would enable many more people to reduce their usage.

Some companies are starting to change products already, such as PG Tips' decision to make their teabags biodegradable (scandalous that you can still sell teabags containing traces of plastic!)

I hope that supermarkets and other food retailers see the surge in plastic-free demand as an opportunity for creativity and real differentiation.

We also need real legislation to bring about large decline in plastic use if we want a brighter future for the suffocating oceans that our children will inherit.