ReThink Disposable in California

ReThink Disposable, a program of Clean Water Action and Clean Water Fund, prevents trash before it starts by working with local governments, businesses and institutions, and consumers to minimize single use disposable packaging in food service to conserve resources, prevent waste and ocean litter pollution.

 

Blog Posts

Related Case Studies

Image of two guests at a concert at August Hall in SF. Photo by ReThink Disposable.

August Hall

August Hall, originally built in the 1890s, is now a multidisciplinary event space with a 951-person capacity music hall, cocktail room, full kitchen, and three lanes of bowling. By switching to reusable TURN cups from 232,000 single-use cups, they expect to save nearly $30,000 annually.
The Fillmore pouring drinks into reusable glasses

The Fillmore

The Fillmore is a 1,199-person capacity music venue located in the Western Addition of San Francisco, California and, fittingly, where Andy Warhol’s Exploding Plastic Inevitable avant-garde multimedia show took place. The Fillmore transitioned from using compostable plastic cups to using TURN reusable cups for an net annual savings of $1,400.
Reusable cup sign at music venue and group of attendees posing with their cups

The Warfield

The Warfield, originally built in the 1920s, was a vaudeville and movie palace and became a 2,250-person capacity concert hall in 1979. In 2023, The Warfield successfully made the switch from single-use plastic and paper cups to reusable cups with a small sustainability fee generating yearly revenue.

Publications

ReThink Disposable: Unpackaging Alameda

With a grant from the California Ocean Protection Council, ReThink Disposable partnered with the City of Alameda to create a model for “unpackaging a city.”

ReThink Disposable Case Study | Manila Eatery

Manila Eatery is successfully implementing these ReThink Disposable cost saving practices: Switched from single-use plastic plates to reusable plates, and replaced two different sizes of single-use plastic bowls with reusable bowls.

ReThink Disposable Case Study | Palo Alto Unified School District

Palo Alto Unified successfully transitions single-use foodware to reusable in 12 elementary schools using a central kitchen distribution model earning an annual net savings of $25,000.
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