Tag Archives: recycling

What a good tasting packaging!

Some people have a lot of ideas. Inventor and chemical engineer David Edwards chronicles the ones he makes happen on his personal website—everything from text books hes written to new companies hes started.

In the past, he figured out a way to make and sell “breathable” food, but his latest idea, and the startup he founded to commercialize it, is one that actually may change the way we eat.

WikiCells is a form of edible packaging that will attempt to eliminate societys wasteful addiction to packaging—millions of tons worth end up in landfills each year, according to the EPA.

According to the new ventures website, the idea for WikiCells is rooted in the way nature has always delivered nutrients: in a digestible skin “held together by healthy ions like calcium.”

Apples, potatoes, tomatoes: they all have an edible exterior that protects the treat within. Even something that isnt exactly delicious—like a citrus peel—finds its way into the kitchen in the form of zest.”This soft skin may be comprised primarily of small particles of chocolate, dried fruit, nuts, seeds, or many other natural substances with delicious taste and often useful nutrients,” writes the WikiCells team.

“Inside the skin may be liquid fruit juice, or thick pudding.” So far Edwards and his collaborators—chief among them the industrial designer François Azambourg—have experimented with a gazpacho-stuffed tomato membrane, a wine-filled grape-like shell, and an orange juice-laden orb with a shell that tastes like, you guessed it, an orange.

Possibilities like an edible milk bottle or yogurt container are not out of the question. This summer WikiCells plans to market ice cream in an edible shell to a French audience—a high-tech version of something the Japanese have long enjoyed: ice cream-stuffed mochi.

via Packaging Never Tasted So Good: The Brave, New World of Edible Wrappers – Lifestyle – GOOD.

How to make your hotel greener: 40 easy steps to follow

Hotel Management Asia recently published a list supplied by Pineapple Hospitality we found really interesting and useful if you aim to make your hotel a greener one.green_hotel_image

1. Programmable and digital control of your HVAC systems: Use electronic thermostats in guestrooms with pre-set settings to minimize energy consumption.

2. Key Card Energy Management System turn off lights when guests are not in room.

3. A linen and towel reuse program is a must.

4. Consider either Organic Cotton Linens or Linens made with Tencel+Plus™

5. Ozone laundry systems reduce the Water, Energy and Chemicals used by the wash.

6. Advance Laundry Solutions also has new drying technology that reduces energy consumption by up to 90%, yet requires no vent and extends textile life.

7. In-room recycling.

8. Recycling containers in all public areas.

9. Use compact florescent light (CFL) bulbs and energy-saving lighting fixtures

10. Install motion sensor-activated lights in areas that are infrequently used.

11. Use natural light as much as possible in common areas, restaurants and meeting rooms. Consider changing window coverings or installing skylights to improve to reduce artificial lighting.

12. “Green roofs” create energy savings by acting as super insulators, keeping buildings warm in the winter and cool in the summer. They also serve as a storm water management systems, catching pollutants as they drain off the roofs.

13. If not plants, how about installing solar panels on your roof?

14. Improve window and door seals. You will save on heating and cooling costs, reduce noise levels and decrease dust circulation.

15. Improve air quality by circulating outside air into guestrooms.

16. Identify something that is being discarded and find re-use for that item – such as reusing old tablecloths to make napkins.

17. Turn off all lighting/equipment/computers when not in use.

18. Make guest registration paperless.

19. Scan and email instead of fax.

20. When you do need to print, use recycled paper, soy-based inks and print double-sided.

21. Biodegradable 100% recycled room keys.

22. Use biodegradable and all-natural bathroom amenities, such as soaps, lotions, shampoos and conditioners.

23. Use bathroom amenity dispensers rather than individually packaged amenities.

24. Buy amenities, food and cleaning products in bulk to reduce waste and transportation costs.

25. 1.6 gallon per flush toilets installed in all rooms and guest areas.

26. Low-flow faucet aerators installed throughout the building and in all guestrooms.

27. Use of environmentally friendly (low VOC) paints.

28. Check with your pest management company to ensure use of integrated pest management (IPM) products and policies that are environmentally friendly and reduce the use of chemicals.

29. Use groundcover and drought-resistant plants to reduce amount of mow-able grass on your properties.

30. Go Smoke-Free!

31. Serve meals buffet style to reduce packaging and waste.

32. Use electric buffet warmers rather than canned fuels.

33. Serve water by each guest’s request rather than pre-pouring.

34. Stop using plastic water bottles.

35. Offer guests bicycles for short trips instead of driving.

36. Consider hybrid or electric vehicles for your fleet.

37. Used recycled rubber for the cardio room floor, or recycled tiles for pool floors.

38. Upcycle or recycle items you no longer need or use for their original purpose – such as in-room furnishings.

39. Give leftover food and/or amenities to charities.

40. Plant a garden and harvest organically-grown vegetables for your restaurant.

Mark’s and Spencer opens greenest store ever

On March 1st, 2010 Marks & Spencer announced a programme to be the world’s most sustainable retailer by 2015 launching 80 major new commitments under M&S’ eco and ethical plan, Plan A.

Plan A, started on 2007, had already proven its efficacy achieving these great results in 2009/2010:
• Cost savings of around £50m for M&S;
• New products and services, including 250,000 customers from M&S Energy;
• Cut CO2 emissions by 40,000t;
• Recycled 2 million used garments via Oxfam;
• Reduced 10,000 tonnes of packaging;
• Diverted 20,000 tonnes of waste from landfill;
• Saved 387 million food carrier bags;
• Used 1,500 tonnes of recycled polyester (equivalent to 37 million bottles);
• Saved 100 million litres of water;
• Recycled or re-used over 130 million clothing hangers;
• £15m for charities.

Yesterday, April 18th 2011, Marks & Spencer achieved a new great result opening the retailer’s “greenest-ever” store at Ecclesall Road in Sheffield.

The store is the first of a number of new ‘Sustainable Learning’ stores, that are part of M&S’ drive to become the world’s most sustainable major retailer by 2015.

The new 12,400 sq ft Simply Food store, built from scratch on a former brownfield site, incorporates a host of sustainable design and construction features, including an LED screen giving real-time public transport information, electric car charging points and a green living wall to attract wildlife.

All the bricks used in the build have also been reclaimed from a local mill.

Marc Bolland said:

“We’re delighted to be opening M&S’ greenest-ever store, providing customers with top quality M&S food and drink products in such a convenient location.”

The store is “firmly on course” to achieve a BREEAM rating of Excellent, making it one of the most sustainable retail outlets in the UK.

Its carbon emissions will be 23% lower and energy usage 30% lower than a traditional similarly sized store.

Innovative features include:

  • LED lighting, which is 25% more efficient than standard lighting, is used throughout the store, a first in the UK.
  • Sun pipes bring natural lighting onto the shop floor;
  • 100% of the timber used is FSC certified, a UK first;
  • All the bricks have been reclaimed from an old local mill;
  • Water costs will be reduced by up to 40%, compared with a traditional similarly sized store, by using harvested rainwater;
  • Capturing heat expelled from the store’s refrigeration units to help heat the store;
  • A living green roof of sedum plants and green living wall have created wildlife habitats, as well as insulating the store;
  • Bird boxes have been placed around the perimeter wall of the site;
  • In total, 62 different species of plants have been planted on or around the store;
  • Polished concrete floors have removed the need for floor covering;
  • 100% of the construction waste has been recycled.

All employees at the store have also been fully trained to understand its environmental features and will be encouraged to share this information with customers. (Source: The Food and Drink innovation Network)

The colors of Ikea Italy: blue, yellow and.. green!

Ikea Italy announced an environmental investment of € 20 million: 150,000 solar panels to be installed by the end of August 2011in each store so that to create a small solar power station. Clean, renewable, sustainable.

About 150,000 solar panels modules will be placed on a aluminum structure resting on the Ikea store roofs, and in Catania (Sicily), also on the bus shelters in the parking lot. An area as big as 16 football fields to cover about 10% of the electricity needs of Ikea Italy. The first floor (showroom) of all stores will be then lightened with this renewable energy. A total of 10,000,000 kWh of electricity, equal to the average consumption of 3,300 households will be produced each year with a reliable and innovative technology.

This will prevent the annual emission of approximately 4,000 tons of carbon dioxide, equivalent to the quantity of CO2 absorbed annually by 400 acres of tropical forest and the emissions of 3,300 cars travelling an average of 10,000 km. Another key point of the Company policy is to reduce waste and an effective use of raw materials, recycled materials or easy to recycle ones, natural and renewable energy, CO2 emission reduction thanks to a clever consumption, the optimization of facilities’operational activities and electricity from renewable sources (in 2010 equal to 83% of the total consumption).

When dealing with waste management, the goal is to reduce it thanks to the development of a less bulky packaging and a careful waste disposal collection so that to assure their almost full recycling. Ikea is bio too. In restaurants, the group includes more than 58 recipes and organic products from biological origin. In 2010, Ikea Italy purchased 2,080 tons of organic products (+38% compared to 2009). Ikea Italy is now the third third largest Ikea supplier company in the world after China and Poland, as stated by the managing director of Ikea Italy, Lars Petersson during a meeting in Milan. (Source. Greenbiz.it)

Green packaging: here’s some news

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In our ECOFFEE experience, Green Packaging and waste management are two of the most difficult to handle issues for a retailer who wants to approach a greener and more sustainable business. Just a couple of years ago, it was very difficult to find packaging that could be both resistant, green and easy to recycle or compost. Now life has been made easier by smart companies which are offering to retailers plenty of products to satisfy the most demanding client: from corn cups to sugar-beet takeout containers, degradable packaging is forecast to expand an impressive 13.6 percent annually to $685 million in 2014.

Now let's talk about two very different kind of packaging, coffee cups and pizza cardboard. Coffee cups are not that common in Italy, where coffee is still serverd in the traditional ceramic "tazzina", but everywhere else in the world, it is a must for those who want to sip the hot drink while driving to office. The Repurpose One Cup  is a new insulated hot cup that is 100 percent certified compostable. The design requires no sleeve, uses 65 percent less CO2 than a disposable coffee cup to produce, and can be composted in 90 days in an industrial facility. If the cups are thrown away with regular trash, they will degrade in the landfill just like food waste. Traditional insulated cups are made by adding additional layers of paper; however, the One Cup keeps coffee (and other beverages) hot by applying patented insulation material to a single wall cup made of FSC-Certified paper.

Talking about pizza, here's the "Salvapizza", a prototype developed in Italy by a pool of experts. Salvapizza is made of white cardboard printed with food ink and this prototype allows consumers to heat the pizza in the microwave. Thanks to the side slots, the pizza "breathes", ensuring the right kind of ventilation during the heating process, hence preserving the pizza fragrance. In the prototyping of Salvapizza, special attention was paid to the possibility of recycling the used container. The cardboard can be in fact easily divided in two parts: the upper part can be detached and easily recycled in the paper waste container. A simple idea, but that can help recycling a lot of waste material, thinking that each year, the Italian production of cardboards for pizza sums up to almost 620 million units. (Source: Crispgreen and Marrai A Fura)

The Ecoacquisti Trentino brand has finally born

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The Ecoacquisti Trentino project aims to the reduction of the waste produced in Retail Stores and raises awareness on a more environmental friendly purchase in more than 100 outlets in the city of Trento area (Italy)

But what does it mean in practice "eco shopping?" Means that in the stores that have received this certification you can find canvas bags or other reusable materials, empty cartons to bring your purchases at home, rechargeable batteries, cold cuts and cheese in a ply-separable paper, fruits and vegetables packaged in compostable bags, bottles of water, wine or milk can be purchased in re-fillable containers.You can alsobuy food with special discounts in last-minute market or donate them to charitable organizations.

The project aims to the reduction of the amount of waste, the promotion of recycling practises, requires a constant audit of the POS and sustains educational projects through school and extracurricular activities. (Courtesy of Alternativa Sostenibile)