22/06/2026
Today is bin day in Kalk Bay and we want to share with you a conscious, manageable solution we have found, to dispose of the inevitable glut of waste a restaurant generates, in a responsible manner.
There was a recent social media post, complaining about restaurant waste in Kalk Bay. As is often the case, the post became combative and generalising, tarring us all with the same brush, so to speak. While we do not wish to enter the fray, we rather want to take this opportunity to share our experience, to bring to awareness the difficulties there are around restaurant waste, and also maybe encourage other restaurants to follow this path.
Clearer Conscience is the waste disposal company we work with.
They collect our food waste three times a week, removing the sealed blue bins in our kitchen and coffee bar areas and replacing them with clean, empty ones. At the end of each day we can seal the bins tightly, keeping them hygienic, ready for collection, or to be used the next day.
Our recyclables are also separated, and we have dedicated bins for this. These are collected on Mondays in clear bags by COCT, and on Wednesdays and Fridays the recycling bins are emptied by Clearer Conscience.
They also remove our general waste, which has hugely reduced, due to the sorting of our waste.
This also has solved the problem of vagrants scratching through the restaurant bins at night - there is no food left in the bins, so the habit has been learnt that Ohana bins have little to offer! This is not malicious damage, but rather the regular problem of hungry people scrounging for food. When we can, we take leftovers to The Haven Night Shelter, where these are also distributed responsibly.
The changeover to this system was very smooth - a small amount of training was provided to all staff, who now also hold each other accountable for placing waste in the correct bins.
Naturally, there is a financial cost attached to this, but we feel it is important to do the right thing, and to rest with a clearer conscience!
