What is the unpackaged original
Original Unverpack was born in Berlin a few years ago, the supermarket that eliminates waste . A meeting place, a social-café for nothing virtual for those who think that the world can stand on other realities than the package, the plastic, the packaging, and that it loves to practice "decluttering" to live minimal and better.
The two young Berliners who started it all, Sara Wolf and Milena Glimbovski, used crowdfunding to start up the business.
It is, as the name of the store itself says, original unpacked products that are sold by weight or liter .
The confections? The consumer brings them: he can bring glass jars, recycled paper bags, eco bags, wicker baskets and more, all in the name of respecting the environment and its resources.
A reality that seems to work therefore, so much so that it has also set up an online course, at a cost of 190 euros, for those interested in having the basics and learning how to start a zero waste supermarket . And in Italy, good intentions aside, how is this type of business going?
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"Zero waste" supermarkets in Italy
If you too are looking for healthy and organic food, certified provenance and short and sustainable supply chain, the road ahead could be quite long, but don't give up, there are places. In fact, there are realities that slowly grow as, like Original Unverpackt in Berlin, give the possibility to make purchases by weight, from detergents to flour, passing through beauty products.
Among the zero waste shops and supermarkets in Italy there are today:
> Here you can find coffee, dried fruit, flour, breakfast products, pulses and cereals, spices, pasta, pastry products, but also tea and herbal teas, eggs and wines, fresh fruit and vegetables . As for non-food products, you can find products for personal hygiene and cleansing, laundry and household detergents, baby products. And then again books, soaps, tricks. Among the services, sustainable deliveries at home ... by bicycle! Where are the "light shops"? In Turin, where everything was born, there are five, in Rome there are two, in Bergamo, in Palermo, in Milan, in Bormio, in Morbegno, in Bra, in Asti and even in Lugano .
> Ecoffer also here you can find bulk products sold without disposable containers, local products and certified, effective and quality. Where can you find this store? For now the sales points are in Capannori (Lucca), Prato, Bologna, Milan . Many products are sold: from cereals, baked goods, seeds, yogurt, butter, cheeses, wines, herbal teas, cosmetic products and much more for the pantry.
> Eco point of Crai . This small chain offers ecological areas where you can top up detergents and bulk liquids or foods. How Newsfood.it communicates it can be found a little distributed in the peninsula
> Auchan self discount, Coop Italia, Carrefour : even these three larger chains offer, but only in certain points of sale, the possibility of using part of the sale of loose products.
Other small zero waste stores are: Pesonetto in Pesaro, with a useful blog updated about the various "buying groups"; Borgo Etico in Cesena, AriEcoidee in Milan, Udine, Padua, Bologna, Reggio Emilia, Ravenna, Como and Alessandria; Bottega delle origchi, in Pavia; The busted shop in Ispra, in the Varese area and other small businesses.
As Instoremag.it informs the bulk product seems to be appreciated and the trend seems to turn positive, despite the habits and many reticences still to be won.
