Ballast Coffee

Café owner Paolo Araneta, every bit as bold as the Barako coffee he serves in San Francisco, deployed a new reusable jar system for Ballast’s daily grab-and-go treats and eliminated single-use disposable containers. Jar deposits are refunded upon return of the jar, or can be applied to the next purchase. After two months of implementation, staff reported a return rate of 75% and didn’t need to restock their jar supply.

Business Profile:

Nestled in San Francisco’s West Portal neighborhood, Ballast Coffee is known to be the only café serving Barako coffee in the city of San Francisco. Grown only in the Philippines and small parts of Malaysia and Vietnam, coffee beans are shipped green to the café and are roasted locally.

Packaging practices prior to ReThink Disposable:

Three sizes of polylactic acid (PLA) plastic containers for grab-and-go snacks (24-ounce for salads, 16-ounce for overnight oats, and 9-ounce for chia pudding and yogurt cups)
Single-use forks, spoons, and knives

Recommendations Implemented:

Replaced three varieties of PLA containers with returnable wide-mouth glass canning jars with lids (32-ounce, 16-ounce, and 8-ounce)
Replaced single-use utensils with stainless steel flatware
Placed signage next to napkins encouraging customers to “take only what they need”

Before & After

Ballast Coffee before and after: plastic yogurt and salad containers to glass mason jars

Napkin stack with sign "Take only what you need, I come from trees"

Utensil Station at Ballast Coffee after reusable item switch

ReThinkDisposableCaseStudy_Ballast Coffee.takeout_0.pdf (1.61 MB)

Business Information:

329 W Portal Ave
San Francisco, CA 94127
United States

Website

The Bottom Line

$1,263

Annual cost savings

12,369 pieces

Of single-use packaging eliminated

245 pounds

Of waste prevented

Reusables [are] the only way small businesses like Ballast should move forward. We all need to do our part in contributing to a sustainable future. Small things add up fast. If we all do our part, what a difference we all can make.

-
Paolo Araneta, Founder and Chief Caffeine Officer

ReThink Disposable - Stop waste before it starts

Reducing Single-Use Food Packaging

ReThink Disposable works with local governments, businesses and institutions, and consumers of single use food packaging to inspire a cultural shift away from single-use "throwaway" lifestyle.

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