Back on October 27th, 2019 (in honour of Waste Reduction Week in Canada) we redesigned our recycling & compost stations and officially started inviting market shoppers to bring reusable dishes and containers for ALL their market purchases! Now here we are in 2025 we are still going strong with our incredible passionate volunteers and successfully diverting so much waste!
While we are always growing, developing policies and consulting our community around this topic, we settled on the following draft guidelines for those bringing reusable containers for perishable foods:
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
Customers must verify to the vendor at each stall visit, that their container meets these minimum standards for use:
- The container and lid must be:
- made of a material that can be cleaned, washed or sterilized. (such as plastic, glass, metal, ceramic, or cloth)
- reusable and of a type that is ordinarily used for food products
- visibly clean; must not contain any food or other residue, indicating that it has not been cleaned after its prior use. Lids must also be clean.
- intact, sturdy and capable of being filled with product, with no holes,
tears or cracks. - plain and neutral, free of bar codes and logos
- sealable. Jars need to have an accompanying lid. Bags must have a drawstring or clip closure, etc.).
- Metal lids should not have any visible rust on them.
- If the vendor is required to fill the container, the customer must remove any lids prior to passing
the container to the vendor. - Plastic and paper bags (including, but not limited to convenience bags, coffee bags and spice
bags) are not considered to be acceptable reusable containers. - Glass or ceramic containers must not be chipped in any way.
Vendors reserve the right to reject any containers that do not meet our minimum standards.
WHAT VENDORS ARE DOING:
Products sold in compostable packaging:
- Butternut Creek Flowers
- Crusty Baker
- Farm Sum / Long Road Eco. Farm
- Natural Turnings
- Old Apple Ridge Farm
Products sold in reusable/returnable packaging:
- Butternut Creek Flowers
- Cocoa Bistro
- Farm Sum / Long Road Eco. Farm
- Main Street Urban Farm
- Winding Path Organic Farm
- Lovebugs
Hot Food served with returnable dishes:
- Knifey Spooney
Natasha’s Ukrainian Cuisine- Cravin’ Kingston
- Lori-Anne’s Pizza
- Farm Sum / Long Road Eco. Farm
- 1000 Curry
- Thai Street Food
- Main Street Urban Farm
DISCOUNTS FOR WASTE REDUCTION CHAMPIONS:
We love supporting our community in their efforts! To further support us, several market vendors are now offering incentives to their customers who come prepared with reusable bags and containers.
