One of the many changes your Co-op made during the COVID-19 pandemic was to remove reusable plates, bowls, and silverware. Although the decision started as a way to reduce potential transmission (when it was thought that COVID was passed along via surfaces), a shortage of staff member time made it a more permanent change.
Since that time, we’ve naturally gone through many more to-go Deli containers and compostable cutlery than before this change. We didn’t like adding more single-use containers to landfills, and—despite our best intentions—our compost service wasn’t able to compost the cutlery due to it requiring very high heat to break down, so we’ve been evaluating solutions over the last few years.
We found reusable wheat straw plates and bowls that are sturdy and don’t add plastic to the waste stream; we’ll be starting to use these in July. The cutlery was more difficult, but we found a great workaround from BriarPatch Food Co-op in Grass Valley and Auburn, California. They offer only stainless steel silverware in the stores, even as to-go options. Customers can use the silverware, then bring it back to a tub the next time they shop at the store. BriarPatch then washes and sanitizes it and puts it back out. Even if some silverware doesn’t return or is accidentally discarded, it’s still a cost-effective and sustainable solution. We’ll be launching this at our three stores in July as well.
