East Idaho McDonald’s to Offer Free Recycled Coffee Grounds
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The following is a news release from McDonald’s.
IDAHO FALLS — As part of the “Good Neighbor, Good Grounds” recycling program, every McDonald’s in Southeast Idaho is making coffee grounds available, daily, to the local community for use in its gardens and composts, at no cost, starting on Earth Day, April 22.
This new initiative is designed to divert used coffee grounds from the waste stream by promoting the reuse of coffee grounds as a nutrient to soil or compost. It also eliminates greenhouse gases and provides a new channel for restaurant employees to connect with customers. This holistic initiative allows the McCafé sustainability/sourcing story to come full circle, from field to cup, to local garden.
“Our McDonald’s restaurants serve a lot of coffee and our vision is to recycle and reduce the waste in our stores as much as possible,” said local Southeast Idaho McDonald’s Owner Operator, Trent Cichos. “The opportunity to give back to not only the community but also the environment, while minimizing our carbon footprint with coffee grounds waste, is a win for everyone.”
The local McDonald’s owners also plan to use this program to help children learn the fundamentals of gardening and educate them on the importance of natural eating and food sustainability, while fertilizing community gardens and absorbing costs that are typically shared by the community.
The bags of used McCafé coffee grounds will be available in every restaurant lobby to be picked up on a first-‐come-‐first-‐served basis. Grounds will be handled through an approved food safety process and prepared for immediate distribution on a daily basis.
The local owners who make up the entire McDonald’s restaurants in Oregon and Southwest Washington, which includes zero corporate stores, are launching this program on Earth Day, April 22, and will continue through the end of the year with plans to carryover into 2017.
“Earth Day is very important for us as well as our customers,” said Cichos. “We plan to use the momentum of the Earth Day coverage to build on the discussion of environmental responsibility and increase awareness as to how our customers can play their part.”