Berkeley schools will ditch disposable foodware

Our work with schools to clean up toxic disposable foodware made it clear that the best choice is one that is not disposable, but reusable. In 2019, the City of Berkeley passed the first ordinance in the nation to require that food vendors use reusable foodware for on-premises dining. The Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD) was also making progress on their own zero-waste goals, making them a precedent-setting candidate for our national work to shift schools to reusables. After testing BUSD’s compostable foodware and finding PFAS, we made the case for reusables in the district through providing key information on the health concerns of single-use foodware, identifying safer alternatives, partnering with an internal green team, and organizing with community groups to support the campaign. BUSD has now made a commitment to transition to reusables. Once fully implemented, this change will divert an estimated 775,000 disposable trays from the landfill annually from BUSD elementary schools alone—while also protecting children from exposure to toxic chemicals. CEH, in partnership with ReThink Disposable, will write up this case study. BUSD’s inspiring story will serve as a replicable model for other school districts around the country to make the shift towards reusable foodware.