For some of our paper good we use a supplier called U.S. Foodservice. Don’t worry, we’re not getting any of our veggies from them. But they are the best of the worst when it comes to what’s called “mainstream broadline” goods. We’re talking paper cups, cleaning supplies, fry oil, etc. We’re working to switch all of our paper packaging to another (local) supplier, but that’s another post.

Anyway, US Food sometimes screws up shipments, everybody does. This time they delivered these cups. I called and sorted it all out, but they offered me 50% off the cups or replacement. I took the 50% off. As I see it you all are having to deal with ugly cups, but we just saved a bunch of money I can use to pay employees, or improve your food. Here’s hoping US Food has more screw ups going forward.

The IAP design class that focused on Clover packaging had their final presentation this past Friday. It was a ton of fun to walk around and see their ideas. I’m now in the position of figuring out how to make some of these real.

We focused on the sandwich. That’s because we rely heavily on the aluminum foil right now for our sandwiches and that’s going to have to go. Aluminum foil is waterproof, holds shape, and is easy to work with. But it’s not compostable.

After the break I’m going to include a few pictures of ideas students had. There was a lot of interest in non-paper materials, which was fun to see. Everything from pineapple skins to soy paper (edible) to Balsa (above).

There’s an IAP design class at MIT that’s working with Clover for one of their projects. I’m hoping it’s going to be their most memorable project of the class. But I’m not doing a great job so far. I didn’t promote the class last week (TLC edged them out), and I was late for our first meeting today. I’d gotten held up at the bank, more on that later.

Our goals for packaging are simple: least negative impact to the environment while delivering a quality experience to customers. Secondarily we’re focused on aesthetics of course.

So I thought I’d post here a quick overview of the packaging we’ve used to date, with some comments. Those who read us often know:

(a) We’re excited about the idea of eliminating trash cans from our restaurants and moving to 100% compostable packaging

(b) I’m skeptical about the environmental benefits of re-usable packaging

Keep reading after the break if you’re interested in more detail about who we’ve worked with to date:

Like everything on the truck we’re trying to get the most learning for the least cost. So from the beginning we’ve been using a variety of packaging suppliers to get a sense of their capabilities. We’ve used:

- HT Berry

- US Foodservice

- Sysco

- Restaurant Depot

- Continental Packaging

- Vegware

- John Calarese and Company

- Mansfield paper

These folks, with the exception of Vegware, have been able to offer us limited products that meet our requirements. What I’ve found is that most of the major suppliers offer a few things that are “green” (e.g., clamshell boxes made from bamboo), but make it near impossible to go “green” across your line-up.