Join us in ditching the plastic part two: taking out the take-out boxes.

Lamb Moussaka and our new cardboard take-out boxes.

Introducing our new cardboard take-away boxes

Last month we blogged about our commitment to ditching single use plastic in Amaretto Deli, after one too many horrifying accounts of what our use of throw-away plastics is doing to our oceans.

We’d just like to update you on where we’re at – yesterday we were proud in introduce our new cardboard take-away hot food boxes, and biodegradable straws. We are also now serving only wooden cutlery.

Our customers have reacted really positively to these changes – it’s helping us all to feel better about our daily impact on the planet; and we’re going to keep going, watch this space.

Join us – and here’s why

To all the other small businesses (and individuals) out there, we are in many ways more fleet of foot than large businesses, let’s turn that to our advantage. Why don’t you join us in giving people what they want and need – and cut out the plastic, because this battle looms ever larger and we need to keep this revolution moving. Why? Here are some recent developments:

Plastic Island bigger than we thought

If you’re doubting the importance of all this have a look at today’s reports on research published in the journal Nature that the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is greater than previously thought. Laurent Lebreton, an oceanographer and lead author of the study says:

‘We need a coordinated international effort to rethink and redesign the way we use plastics. The numbers speak for themselves. Things are getting worse and we need to act now.’

Ocean plastic will triple in the next ten years

Apart from that headache, the ocean plastic problem is set to get worse: only yesterday the Government’s The Foresight Future of the Sea Report warned that the plastic littering the ocean is  currently due to treble in the next ten years. Professor Ed Green said:

‘When people get to see what is in the ocean, and the Blue Planet series and so on have helped people to visualise it, and then I think their reaction is twofold, one is complete wonder at what is there, and in other cases complete horror at what we’re potentially doing to it.’

Still not convinced? How about this report from Orb Media last week that 93% of top bottled water brands are contaminated with micro-plastics (!)

It’s easy to feel hopeless in these circumstances, but there is a great deal we can all do, and we can do it now. Do keep us updated on how you’re getting on, and we’ll do the same.

Good luck with it!

Amaretto Deli