With wedding season around the corner many couples are thinking of ways to have an environmentally sound wedding. There are several things to consider when working towards a “green” celebration. Actively seeking a green wedding is the first step couples need to take when planning because it will not happen with a passive approach. Couples should ask themselves and their vendors what green options are available during the planning process. Is china or glassware our best option, or should we use compostable paper plates and flatware? Are there locally grown flowers and greens? Is recycled paper available to print our wedding invitations? Does your caterer have organic and local food options on their menu? All are environmentally sensitive options that should be considered.
Currently on the market, there are a number of products that go a long way toward helping a wedding produce less waste. The use of china, silverware and glassware is the obvious choice in the pursuit of a green reception. Not only does their use save trees but also the fuel necessary to produce and transport the disposable paper products. Your caterer should have a selection of service ware available for use in addition to a relationship with a vendor that rents a wide selection of beautiful products. If you should decide to use disposable products keep in mind that they are not all recyclable or compostable. There are compostable paper plates, flatware and drink ware made of corn starch, as well as compostable napkins. Some of these products are even made from a large percentage of post-consumer recycled paper.
Occasions Catering & Special Events is a catering company in the South Sound that takes the “green” in the Evergreen state seriously. From the office, to the kitchen, to on site catering events Occasions and their employees have worked hard to be a green company. They have received a green company designation from Puget Sound Energy and continue to strive to find new ways to protect the environment.
A busy catering company can produce a lot of trash, packaging, plastic bags, cans and bottles, as well as paper and food waste. To take care of the problem, their kitchen utilizes LeMay’s compost program for food waste as well as recycling all of those packaging materials that used to go into the landfill. At each event catered by Occasions, a green compost bin for food and compostable paper and corn products is used to sort compostables, recyclables and trash.
In their office, that translates into using recycled paper for printing, lighting with low energy bulbs, heating and cooling the building with an efficient system and using several trash bins at each work site for sorting garbage, compostables and recyclable materials.
- Chef Diana retrieving a recyclable from the trash.
By taking advantage of the recycling and composting programs available to them Occasions has cut their to landfill trash by more then half! Needless to say employees must have a green attitude and their customers really appreciate it! So, this year when you are planning your wedding, thinking “green” may not be a romantic thought, but it is a valid concern when choosing a company to be part of your wedding celebration.
