G51 - East West Organics - Soya - Auckland Region
Summary
East West Organics took part in Waitakere City Council's Clean Retail program.
They were able to reduce their solid waste by 78% at no cost.
Business Profile
East West Organics is an organic food shop and tofu manufacturing business
in Glen Eden, Waitakere City. The business is managed by it's two owners.
Type of Project
Waste reduction, reuse and recycling of materials.
The Project
In 1996 East West joined the Clean Retail project run by Waitakere
City Council. Clean retail is part of the council's commitment
to reducing waste and pollution, and supporting local businesses.
Council works with local retailers to develop their own Clean
Retail programme using the Clean Retail kit, workshops, information
sharing and partnership programmes. East West Organics joined
the programme because they felt environmental issues were important
to themselves as well as to their customers. East West had a
number of practises in place which were environmentally friendly
and reduced waste, but they were keen to find new ways of improving
their environmental practices. A waste audit determined which
wastes should be targeted for reduction. Energy use became a
target area because electricity bills seemed excessively high.
Product range
East West offer organically grown produce. All vegetables and fruit and some
of the bulk foods come from organic farms. Organically grown produce reduces
the impact of farming on land and water ways, and is a healthier option for
people because it is free of pesticides. They also offer many environmentally
friendly products, such as vegetable based soaps, biodegradable detergents
and 'natural' cosmetic products. The majority of vegetables are not pre-packed.
Vegetable and fruit waste is given to gardeners for composting. Most foods
are offered in bulk to reduce the need for packaging. Paper bags are provided,
which some customers reuse again and again. Packaging Packaging is of major
concern to the retail sector. East West heard of new laws in Europe which
make retailers take back their packaging. This motivated East West to critically
look at packaging in their shop. They found most of their products were not
excessively packaged, but they decided to approach one supplier with their
concerns.
East West informed their supplier that they would no longer
accept products packaged in polystyrene chips. Even though the
supplier said they were just re-using materials sent from Europe,
East West insisted on a change. The supplier now uses popcorn
to package their delicate products. East West also encourage
customers to bring their own bags and offer cardboard boxes,
paper and plastic bags to customers for reuse.
Solid Waste
A waste audit showed that "okra" made up 78% of the waste stream.
Okra is a Soya bean pulp which is a waste product from the
production of tofu. Okra is
high in protein and makes an excellent food source. East West found a farmer
prepared to pick up the okra from their shop. This has reduced solid waste
by 78% and saved them the cost of disposal to landfill.
Energy
East West were concerned about their energy use. They initially believed that
an old open display fridge, was using a lot of energy, but when they monitored
electricity use they were unable to determine where the energy was being
used. East West will work with Power New Zealand's energy advisor service
to solve this problem.
The benefits of 'Clean Retail' to East West
- Solid waste was reduced by 78%. This translates
to a reduction of 4.5 tonnes a year.
- The programme has made the owners of East West
more aware of options available to reduce their environmental
impact, and has reassured them that what they were already
doing was worthwhile.
- The reduction of packaging means that less waste
is passed on to customers.
- There are some happy, healthy well fed cattle
somewhere in Waitakere City.
The cost
East West invested some time and thought but no money into the project, and
they came up with remarkable results and cost savings.
For additional information contact:
Rachel Brown
Cleaner Production
Project Manager
Waitakere City Council
Private Bag 93109
Henderson
Phone: (09) 836 8000
Fax: (09) 836 8073
Email: rachel.brown@waitakere.govt.nz
| 
