By Morag McKenzie
As Canadians witness the effects of climate change in every aspect of their lives, sustainability and decreasing the environmental footprint of their foodservice businesses have become an increasing focus for operators across Canada.
While restaurateurs continue to make a positive impact by utilizing local and seasonal ingredients, introducing more plant-based menu items, reducing food and production waste, managing energy efficiency and in their restaurant design, one area that has undergone increased focus is packaging.
Walking the Talk
Many studies show that Canadians are strongly influenced by sustainability when making a food or beverage purchase at a restaurant. However, actual actions taken by some customers do not always support this. “A lot of people are motivated by sustainability, but also by convenience and cost. It’s a balance, and will take time to work into people’s habits,” explains Kelly Higginson, CEO of Restaurants Canada.
However, one impact that most customers notice immediately is packaging. Stevie Driscoll, brand designer for The Fifteen Group in Toronto says, “Whether ordering takeout or [packing up] your meal leftovers, the type of packaging an operation uses demonstrates their commitment to sustainability. It’s often the last impression an operation leaves on a customer.”
Canadian Government Impact
In November 2023, the Federal Government proposed a ban on many plastic single-use items, including straws, cutlery, foodservice ware and stir sticks. Led by plastics manufacturers, it was overturned by a Canadian court as unreasonable and unconstitutional.
“Industry is not looking at sustainability because of government legislation, but because it’s the right thing to do and makes business sense,” says Higginson, adding Restaurants Canada has hired a VP of Sustainability to ensure the foodservice industry has a seat at the table and is intimately involved in all future legislation. “One of the most critical challenges operators face is the patchwork of legislation at all levels of government, which results in some of the most innovative packaging solutions not supported by area bylaws and local waste-disposal facilities.”
Maria Cancellieri, GM of Bloom Sushi, a plant-based restaurant in Montreal says the business initially purchased compostable packaging for the restaurant. “Then Montreal introduced a bylaw, which made our packaging non-compostable, so we needed to switch our packaging again to ensure it was at least recyclable.”
What is the real cost?
Reducing the use of plastics and moving to sustainable packaging is a major priority for many foodservice operators. However, it comes at a cost. “The price differential can be up to $0.40 per package depending on order size. By the time operators get to packaging decisions, they’re usually already significantly over budget. Restaurants that have a focus on sustainability will accept that cost, but not all can,” explains Driscoll.
Demand and Supply
Today, there’s is a great deal of innovation around sustainable packaging, including plant-based, PLA (polylactic acid), bamboo and many other compostable products, yet one of the hurdles that remains is regulations around its disposal. Jennifer Appleby, CEO of Vines Georgette Packaging, a sustainable-packaging broker based in Kitchener-Waterloo, Ont. says, “There is so much innovation in this space, however, how these products are used at the end of life — and the varying regulations around this — means that what is compostable at one facility might not be at another. Our priority when developing a packaging strategy is to ensure the packaging complies with our customers’ area by-laws. In partnership with our clients, we communicate in our packaging how to compost or recycle our packaging.”
She adds scalability is another issue. PLA is a great product as it can be home and commercially composted, however, the world supply is so low that if a large business embraced it, it would use the entire existing supply.
Re-usable Packaging
Friendlier, a re-usable cup and container company located in Guelph, Ont., launched in 2020. With more than 200 locations, 1.5 million containers have been successfully re-used. Customers order their food in a Friendlier container and pay $0.50 to $1 for its use. After consumption, they scan the QR code on the bottom of the container, their deposit is returned to their account, and the container is returned to any participating location. Friendlier then picks containers up, washes and sanitizes them and re-fills them as required.
“We have experienced tremendous growth in the last few years, expanding from Southern Ontario to Ottawa, Montreal and now Vancouver. The greatest interest is in universities and colleges,” says Jacquie Hutchings, the company’s co-founder. “We do everything we can to drive down our carbon footprint, including launching our first electric delivery vehicle.”
River Café in Calgary was built around sustainability. “Built in 1991, we’re designed to look and feel as on old fishing lodge,” says Sal Howell, owner and operator. “Our picnic packages are either re-usable or compostable.”
Sustainability for All
Four All is an all-natural, locally sourced ice-cream shop in Kitchener-Waterloo, Ont. Ajoa Mintah, founder and head ice-cream maker, launched Four All in 2017 with a vision of making delicious, hand-crafted ice cream delivered in as sustainable a manner as possible.
“The first thing I did when searching for packaging was go to my area waste-disposal facility to find out what type of packaging it recycled or composted so my packaging would meet its criteria.”
Glass jars are used as containers for ice cream purchased for at home with a refundable $1 deposit.
Waste management is also a focus at Four All. “In the Scoop Shoppe we only have two bins — one for recycling (packaging) and one for compost (napkins, wooden spoons, ice cream et cetera). Production is simple — we re-use and re-purpose as much as possible. When we make strawberry ice-cream cake, we have to macerate the strawberries, which creates a waste product of strawberry syrup. We sell that as Strawberry Lime Soda in our Scoop Shop,” adds Mintah. “We also have thousands of metal tasting spoons, which we sanitize and re-use.”
She concludes, “I knew it would cost more to deliver my products, but that is the way I started it.
My customers know they are going to pay more for my ice cream because of my use of local and sustainable products. However, they’re willing to do so for those very same reasons.”
What’s Next?
Canadians and operators alike across Canada agree that moving to more sustainable operations and packaging is the path forward. “Achieving a more sustainable business is an uphill battle, and there has to be some sacrifices in terms of cost and convenience along the way. However, it’s worth it. If every restaurant demands sustainable packaging, it’ll become more affordable for all. If we all work together, our end goal will be achievable,” concludes Driscoll.
