Responsible Cafes in Mid North SA

Rubbish from the roadside A sample of roadside rubbish that I have picked up. Note the high proportion of throw-away cups.   OTR: ban and no ban OTR (On The Run) announced in June 2018 that they would no longer fill peoples' keep-cups, because of concerns about hygiene. The ban was overturned three months later, largely because of public pressure. A keep-cup cleaning procedure was developed together with Trees for Life and Zoos SA. The aim of this page is to inform people of the unnecessary waste coming from coffee shops, bakeries, service stations, etcetera in the Clare Valley and to provide some incentive for these businesses to 'lift their game'. For several years I have picked up roadside rubbish. The proportion of this rubbish that is made up by use-once-and-throw-away cups is very large and, frankly, disgusting. Even the use-once-and-throw-away cups that are disposed of 'responsibly' usually end up in land-fill, most have a plastic liner and can't be composted. How can this situation be improved? An organisation called Responsible Cafes actively encourages coffee shops to give a discount to people who bring their own reusable cup (sometimes called a keep-cup) for take-away drinks. At the time of writing there were no establishments in Clare township that were registered with Responsible Cafes and only three in the greater Clare Valley (one in Watervale and two in Auburn). The scum-bags who throw their rubbish out of car windows will be the hardest to get to change their ways, but if coffee shops offer a small discount for the use of reusable cups perhaps some will change. The South Australian EPA provides a way you can report people who litter via the Internet; or you can report them by phone on 8204 2004 or 1800 623 445 in country South Australia. If you are ordering a coffee to drink in a cafe or roadhouse and are not sure what sort of cup it will come in, tell them that you don't want a disposable cup. Some places will give you a throw-away cup if you don't ask for reusable. I would like to see a deposit on throw-away cups AND on their lids, but I don't think we have sufficiently progressive or environmentally minded governments in Australia for that to happen. This page provides my understanding of the status of establishments in the Clare Valley; some of my ratings may well be wrong. Owners of establishments who believe I have wronged them should email me; my email is given above. Articles on my efforts to make Mid North coffee shops more environmentally responsible were published in the Producer and Northern Argus newspapers on 2018/03/21. Any help from others in getting action will be welcome. Information on coffee suppliers that I haven't listed would be useful, and, of course, getting the word out will be a big help. My email address is at the top of this page. Why would a cafe be environmentally responsible? There are two reasons a cafe operator may try to be environmentally responsible: Because they see that their customers want it, or Because they want to do the right thing for the environment themselves. An observant customer can usually pick which is the main reason in a particular cafe, but in the end it is the outcome that counts.

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How responsible are Clare Valley coffee shops?

Clare township

Look for this poster

Notes If you use a reusable cup, please make sure it is clean before asking for it to be filled. Stars Reusable cup supplied for eat-in customers: sometimes, * always, ** Clean BYO cups (keep-cups) accepted, * Discount given for BYO: less than $0.25, * at least $0.25, less than $0.50, ** at least $0.50, less than $1, *** $1 or more, **** No disposable cups at all, ***** *** If there are more than five stars I've put them in several groups for clarity. ResponsibleCafes also encourage cafes to: Not offer disposable coffee cups at all Not offer plastic bags Not sell bottled water Offer straws only on request or not at all Not offer plastic cutlery Compost food waste Use renewable energy

Greater Clare Valley

Auburn

Seven Hill

Watervale

Cogwebs in Auburn
Not only does the proprietor of Cogwebs give a $0.50 discount for keep-cups, but she also encourages people to buy keep-cups. It would be good to see more environmental responsibility like this in the Mid-North.

Brinkworth

Burra

Crystal Brook

Laura

Redhill

Port Pirie