Two more Banff businesses are being honoured for their efforts to stop waste from going to landfill.
Nourish Bistro and Botega Salon are the latest recipients of the Zero Waste Trailblazer Awards, a recognition for Banff businesses and institutions that go above and beyond efforts to reduce, re-use and recycle.
“The Town of Banff strives to be a model environmental community and these businesses are helping us move towards our goal of producing zero waste going to landfill by 2050,” said Banff Mayor Karen Sorensen. “Thank you to Botega and Nourish for showing a commitment to doing things differently to help protect our local and global environment.”
Botega Salon
Botega Salon is owned by Meg Taylor, who is passionate about zero waste and sustainability. Botega’s partnership with Green Circle Salons helps them recover and repurpose 95% of unique salon waste products that may otherwise end up in the landfill.
The salon also hosts environmentally friendly events. Botega often features the work of emerging Bow Valley artists on their walls and hosts gallery openings to showcase the work. You’ll never find a disposable cup or plate used to serve food at any of these events.
In addition, thought and intention is put into every product that enters the salon. Botega sells cradle-to-cradle certified beauty products (this means at the end of their life, they can be completely recycled), upcycled accessories, and even displays them on shelves made from re-purposed barn wood. This attention to detail at all levels speaks to the salon’s dedication to zero waste leadership.
Meg and the whole team at Botega walk the talk and help keep people and our planet beautiful.
Nourish Bistro
Since 2015, Nourish Bistro has been known for providing Banff’s residents and visitors with farm-to-table vegetarian cuisine, with zero waste and sustainability being a top priority in all aspects of the business.
In addition to diverting all waste into appropriate streams and minimizing waste produced where possible, general manager Alex Boston and the team at Nourish is always looking upstream to make purchases considering sustainability goals. Nourish’s scratch kitchen wastes no food, and homemade preserves give a longer life to farm-fresh summer produce.
The menu at Nourish is designed for sharing-style meals which are conducive to not only an enjoyable dining experience, but zero waste left on the table. Moving toward zero waste has been a part of the culture for the team at Nourish from the beginning, which is one of the reasons it attracts sustainability-minded employees and customers alike.
Nourish showcases how truly delicious a sustainable restaurant can be.
Zero Waste Trailblazers are selected based on 10 categories and 20 certification criteria relating to waste reduction and diversion practices, measured results, and related environmental protection initiatives. The categories are listed at https://www.banffzerowastetrail.ca/commercial/
The Town of Banff launched the Zero Waste Trail program in 2019 to help restaurants, hotels and other organizations reduce the amount of waste going to landfill. At least 65% of Banff’s waste going to landfill comes from the commercial sector, and almost 50% of that waste is food.
The Zero Waste Trail program invites businesses to register for a free consultation and assessment of procedures, training, infrastructure, and diversion measurements. Businesses are provided advice, mentorship from other leading organizations, free signage & training resources, and suggestions for cost-saving strategies. For more information, or to learn how to be a Zero Waste Trailblazer, visit BanffZeroWasteTrail.ca.