Anyone who knows, works or has bought food from us will have undoubtably heard us say “but think about the turtles!”; it has become something of a mantra of ours to make people think a little bit about waste. It is lighthearted and fun but there is real meaning behind it.
Helping try to protect the world’s oceans in the food industry is a really big challenge. Pollution, waste, over-fishing, climate change and habitat destruction are increasingly putting marine life at risk and we have to accept that as an industry we have played a part in this.
BUT…just because it has been like that in the past doesn’t mean it has to be like that in the future.
This is what we are doing;
Reduce.
Packaging – you will only find necessary packaging with our products.
Waste – we have little food waste; where possible we will use every part of the produce for something. We even make stock from the butcher’s unwanted chicken bones.
Growing – last year we took ownership of an allotment, with a vision that in the future we can create menus based on the produce we have growing seasonally.
Plastic – we request all our deliveries in plastic free packaging and take reusable containers to collect the meat from the butcher.
Our footprint – our deliveries are only once a week, and we prefer to deliver than collect so that less overall miles will be travelled.
Supplier footprint – we use local suppliers who we know buy their produce locally. We plan menus seasonally to ensure we are not ordering food with a large carbon footprint.
Reuse.
Packaging – all the packaging you get will be able to be reused.
Storage – in trying to fight the chef war on cling film habits of the past, wherever possible reusable containers will be used to store food. (Try this at home yourself, you will save a fortune on cling film).
Up-cycling – all of our linen was made from discarded denim off cuts.
Recycling
Packaging – once you have reused our packaging to death, it can all be recycled.
Food waste – compostable food will be composted ready for the allotment.
With regards to recycling, food waste bins and composting, be sure to check out your council’s recycling and composting guidelines as they are all seemingly different from one to the next.
We are all not perfect, but all it takes is for everyone to do a little everyday to make a big impact.
In celebration of World Sea Turtle Day, Inspires Dining is going a little bit further to help protect the future of sea turtles and we have proudly become adopted parents of two. So be prepared for lots of upcoming turtle spam!
Inspires Dining – Sustainable Dining
Find out more about the WWF and adopting a turtle or other endangered animals below.