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zero waste

Lunch To Go…And Back Again!

Hello fellow Co-Op Members,

 

For those of you who might not have had the chance to read the blog post I sent out a few weeks ago concerning compostable packaging in the Co-Op, I’ll introduce myself again; my name is Greg Prescott, Store Operations Manager.

In my last post, I wanted to connect with you to discuss the largest roadblock in switching over all our packaging to compostable— that we do not yet have access to high-heat composting facilities, which are required for proper decomposition of packaging. For this reason, we still rely on plastics, which can be recycled, but we are actively looking for better alternatives to meet our packaging needs.

In light of this commitment to finding more sustainable alternatives, we’re introducing the reusable take-home salad and hot bar container, which you may now find at the Co-Op: a BPA Free, NSF Certified, Health Code Compliant, microwavable and dishwasher safe reusable to-go container. I’m so pleased to be able to say, IT’S HERE! 

This is a huge deal for us.  A reusable container takes waste out of our landfills, which is our ultimate goal. All told, a reusable to-go container program can be difficult to execute because of important health codes. You may be familiar with what it’s like eating from a buffet, where you are required to grab a new plate each time you choose to fill up again. When I began my search for a reusable container, I remember thinking that this sort of “plate rule” seemed weird and wasteful, but it’s really designed to keep consumers safe from the transference of unsafe or just plain gross substances we would potentially be exposed to if say, the romaine tongs picked up a looming “foreign substance”. (insert villain music)

The health code states that all containers or plates for food need either be single use or washed and sanitized by the establishment between each and every use. This means, in practice, that I am unable to bring in my own container and fill it with delicious food unless the deli staff washes and sanitizes the container prior to use— a pretty inconvenient process for both staff and patron.

Therefore, we have invested in these new reusable to-go containers which will (hopefully) provide a streamlined alternative to our curent disposable packaging. Here’s how it works:

  1. Deli staff washes and sanitizes the containers
  2. The containers are placed out near the salad and hot bar
  3. A customer can grab one, fill it up with either salad or hot bar or both
  4. Go through the register, pay for the food and provide a $5 deposit for the container
  5. Rinse the container at home, your place of work or wherever you may find yourself
  6. Bring the container back to the Co-Op and give it to a cashier to receive your $5 deposit back
  7. AND REPEAT

This is the same system our customers have been using when buying glass bottle milk and, best of all, remains health code compliant. While this process may not work for everyone and does not address all of our hurdles in attempting to minimize waste on a broader scale, it does chip away at the issue.  Every small step brings us closer to where we’re going.

Thank you for helping to push our Co-Op forward and allowing me to serve in that process.

See you in the lunch line,

Greg Prescott

Store Operations Manager

The Trashy Truth About Compostables

Hello fellow Co-Op Members,

My name is Greg Prescott and I am the Store Operations Manager here at your Co-Op. I want to take some time to talk with you about an issue that has been gathering a lot of attention in our collective conscious— an issue that is finally turning the momentum of change. I would like to talk about plastics; most specifically plastic straws, compostable packaging and where our Co-Op is right now pertaining to this discussion.

As a member of the Co-Op community and the broader global community, I endeavor to find the best possible solutions for our planet. I have a one-year-old son who depends on this commitment so that he and all future generations can thrive and further the stewardship of our planet’s health. As a father and the operations manager of the Co-Op, I am balancing between my strong desire for our Co-Op to be a pioneer in establishing positive changes toward a healthier environment and what is logical with our current systems. I hope through addressing some specific customer concerns, I can convey the complexities which may make progress come more slowly than we all would like; and further, how exactly we are trying to do the right thing.

Two recent and pertinent comments that speak to our use of plastics are: “Please replace (y)our straws with compostable” and “I love that you are carrying fresh Faroe Island Salmon, but the plastic packaging seems excessive and bad for the ocean”. Addressing these specific examples may help to illustrate our thinking and what we are currently working through and towards.

Replacing our plastic straws with compostable straws should be easy. Unfortunately, our decision not to make the switch at this moment is because we do not have access to an adequate high-heat composting facility needed— the straws would go to a landfill in exactly the same way as our current plastic straws.

Compostable straws (along with many other types of compostable packaging) will only break down and compost in specialized high-heat composting facilities. Right now, the infrastructure of Vermont’s waste management system is unable to support mass quantities of compostable packaging, not enough high heat facilities exist. We finally have access to compostable packaging and single-use items (straws, cups, “Styrofoam” trays, cutlery) but we do not have the technology in place to take advantage of this amazing advancement. It is going to take time for our infrastructure to catch up to our needs as environmentally conscious consumers.

Currently, we are working with Casella’s Waste Systems. For years Casella’s has handled our trash and single stream recycling program. Recently Casella’s has begun to help with our composting needs. Every Wednesday Casella’s will pick up our compost and bring it locally to Foster Brothers where it is dropped off to decompose and become, well, compost. Foster Brothers is not a high-temperature composting facility, therefore products such as compostable straws will never reach the required temperature to properly break down. This is where we are currently— we are absolutely still searching for other options and hope to soon find a solution to our lack of in-state high-temp composting resources.

So, what can we do as consumers? Well, the best practice of all is to personally invest in a reusable straw. By doing so you are removing as many straws out of the collective waste stream as you have beverages that require straws.

What can the Co-Op do?

We are working with our supplier to source paper straws. Paper straws are biodegradable and break down quickly, eliminating the long-term/forever effects of plastics. However, paper straws can break down quickly in beverages. This means paper straws are not everybody’s favorite. We have been product testing straws and while they hold up well enough in liquids such as iced coffee, they don’t last very long in our smoothies. Therefore, when we are prepared to offer paper straws, we will still have plastic straws available upon request. Additionally, there are some customers who may absolutely need a plastic straw, so it becomes imperative to keep them available. (please read this article from NPR, I found it to be very eye-opening).

Moving on to the second pertinent comment regarding our seafood packaging: “I love that you carry fresh Faroe Island Salmon, but the plastic packaging seems excessive and bad for the ocean”. With our expansion, we have recently been able to carry fresh seafood. We were looking for an alternative to the traditional Styrofoam trays and plastic wrap for seafood packaging, which are a threat to our planetary health, and discovered a particular plastic container, that while not our ideal or long-term answer, is recyclable. As of now, anyone with access to single-stream recycling can recycle these containers. I say “as of now” because of the developing issue with China refusing to accept our recycling waste (you can find many articles about this, including this one from NPR). Although this isn’t the best option overall for packaging, it is the best option we currently have.

In closing, I want to stress that although in the immediate future, we are unable to provide an all-encompassing packaging switch, we are actively engaged with our most heartfelt desire to take responsible action for the sake of our environment through overcoming the aforementioned logistical roadblocks. We are working hard with our suppliers and our partners to find better, truly sustainable options and will do our best to embrace them and construct ways that our Co-Op can integrate them into the community. Until then, please keep pushing us to do better. Please know that we want to do better. And please bless us with your patience as we try to solve these problems in the most responsible and thoughtful way. Thank you very much for allowing me your time.

Yours in service,
Greg Prescott
Store Operations Manager

On Plastic Bags and Nude Food

“There is absolutely no logic in wrapping something as fleeting as food in something as indestructible as plastic.”   Sian Sutherland

In the 1967 movie,  “The Graduate”, there is an often quoted line: “There’s a great future in plastics”.  Sadly, any plastic referenced during that conversation is likely still around. Plastic is just about indestructible and does have a great future in terms of longevity. Worldwide concern about the ubiquitous use of plastic is growing, however, and some locales have developed unique approaches to address the problem. A few factoids:

  • Scientists estimate that 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic have been produced worldwide since the 1950s when mass production began. Of that, roughly 6.3 billion metric tons have been thrown away, and only 9 percent of discarded plastic has been recycled.
  • A Dutch supermarket chain introduced what it billed as the world’s first plastic-free aisle in a store in Amsterdam. There, shoppers found groceries, snacks, and other items packaged in compostable materials or in glass, metal or cardboard.
  • The Church of England issued a Lenten challenge this year, asking people to avoid purchasing plastic products and packaging for a six week period as a way to raise consciousness about plastic shopping habits.
  • A number of countries have either eliminated plastic bags in grocery stores or charge customers for them. Follow-up suggests a significant reduction of plastic bags in the waste stream where these measures have been implemented.

A particularly good overview of the omnipresent plastic bag comes from Joseph Curtin, a member of the Irish government’s Climate Change Advisory Council, in the 3.4.18 edition of the New York Times. No matter how you feel about this, there is no question that the prevalence and permanence of plastic bags in our waste stream is a problem, and we can all do our small part to mitigate it. Plastic bags are not “free”. Stores pay for them and pass the cost on to customers. There are environmental and financial costs associated with the energy and resources required to produce, recycle, and/or remove them from the refuse stream.

In recent readings, I encountered the term “nude food”, i.e. food that is not packaged in any way. It is selected at the market, placed in a container you have brought with you, and remains unclothed until you get it home.  We have developed many automatic, unconscious food shopping habits that require some reflection. When buying fresh produce that is pre-packaged, or that we place in a plastic bag, we are actually purchasing two items. One we will use, the other will be thrown away. This makes little sense, as noted in a recent New York Times piece that quotes Sian Sutherland, co-founder of A Plastic Planet, an advocacy group that has pushed the concept of eliminating plastic bags. Ms. Sutherland notes, “There is absolutely no logic in wrapping something as fleeting as food in something as indestructible as plastic.”

If you want to do your part locally, there are many alternatives to using immortal plastic bags.  Google “alternatives to plastic bags” to become educated about an array of reusable products. Become mindful of bringing home some “nude food”. Some possibilities:

  • Bee’s Wrap, a reusable alternative to plastic wrap, is made in Bristol, Vermont and you’ll have fun discovering ways to use it.
  • Reusable silicone bags that have the see-through, flexible, and hygienic appeal of plastic
  • Heavy duty canvas or cotton grocery bags that can hold 40+ pounds
  • Linen bread bags touted to keep bread fresher than plastic
  • Muslin produce bags said to keep produce fresher than plastic
  • Nylon mesh produce bags that allow cashiers to access UPC stickers
  • Incredibly appealing cotton and polyester sandwich bags that would make brown bagging a much more esthetic experience
  • Bring a reusable tote bag with you when you shop and stash pre-used paper and plastic bags inside for produce or bulk products
  • Consider buying bread packaged in a recyclable paper bag
  • If you buy bulk coffee, those sturdy, lined brown bags that are provided can be reused, easily 10 to 15 times. Or just use an ordinary paper bag. It is better to store coffee in a glass and/or airtight container anyway, so you only need to get the coffee home and doesn’t using a new bag each time seems excessive?
  • If you have purchased something in one of those clear plastic “clamshell” containers, use it again and again for produce or bulk items.
  • To transport your “nude food” from store to home, enjoy the retro charm of shopping with a real basket from your home collection, or grab a small cardboard box from the array available at the front of the store. The latter is also great if you’ve forgotten your tote bag.

It’s our store, so let’s continue the conversation … it is an important one!

Louise Vojtisek is a Middlebury Natural Foods Co-op Board Member