Restore Our Earth

Eliminate Styrofoam – Use Eco-Friendly, Waterproof Takeout Boxes in All Restaurants, Retail Food Vendors and Non-Profit Preparers  

​Styrofoam is among the most toxic of plastics, so eliminating it from landfills is a good thing. The Town of Winchester and the State of Connecticut have been addressing this issue for over 30 years. The Board of Selectman enacted Ordinance 157​, effective on December 1, 1990, which established a task force to educate all restaurants, retail food vendors, non-profit food preparers, and food packagers to develop a comprehensive plan to recycle this product, with the ultimate goal to eliminate its use/sale in Winchester. Fast-food restaurants like Dunkin Donuts and McDonalds have been transitioning to paper products for years, but not all local businesses in Winchester have. ​ 

With the rise of take-out options to sustain businesses due to pandemic restrictions, Friends of Main Street has been looking for alternative packaging that re-enforces Ordinance 157, the town ban on polystyrene/styrofoam.

This year a Connecticut restaurateur decided to start a new business, Kraftgreen, to manufacture Eco-Friendly, waterproof takeout boxes with their new business. Previously they purchased paper to-go packaging overseas. Due to the pandemic, they had to wait four months for one order, so they decided to manufacture the packaging in Connecticut and eliminate the logistics nightmare.
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What an opportunity – buy local, support a new CT business, and have a local source for food businesses in Winchester and neighboring towns...  And eliminate styrofoam from our landfill.