Feeling scrappy
How do you become Australia’s first zero-waste caterer? Dan the Man in Sydney steps up to the challenge.
Dan the Man prefers to throw around ideas, rather than throw things out.
For one catering job, the Sydney business served lamb and used the leftover fat to create a candle that was poured into an empty chickpea tin
(the legumes were on the menu, too). It’s the kind of creative thinking that’s helping the company achieve its goal of one day becoming Australia’s first zero-waste caterer. Co-founder Ilana Cooper says peering inside the compost bin has inspired her team. Carrot tops and peels, from heirloom-carrot crudités, were taking up a lot of bin space at events. “Enter carrot-top pesto and carrot-peel bar snacks,” she says. “They also made their way into our signature mongrel focaccia, which is made with our leftover herbs.” And instead of single-use napkins, the team uses fabric offcuts supplied by fashion label Bec + Bridge, which can be washed instead of trashed. Phasing out cling film has been tough, though – “driving really slowly with tea towels on food and just hoping for the best” was one attempted solution, before staff realised that attaching silicon sheets to platters with bulldog clips was the best option. At the end of Dan the
Man events, guests are encouraged to leave with leftover food (which adds a joyous element to parties). The caterer has just launched a waste-audit program to help any business hoping to reduce its impact on the environment.
Forget wasteful hotel breakfast buffets. Base Vevey in Switzerland’s Lake Geneva region has a better idea: the Base Breakfast Bag. On the bag’s list of options, tick what you’d like (from muesli to fresh pastries from Hokta, a bakery 500 metres away). Leave it by your door and awake to find the bag filled the next morning. basevevey.com