food package
Food & Drink

The Choice of Using PLA Packaging in our Restaurant

— Contributed by Ashley Yamamoto

Our family owns a small Japanese restaurant in Orange County, who luckily was able to manage surviving during the hit of the Coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown. We were able to do this by doing deliveries and food pickup. I was also able to apply to our restaurant in Doordash and Grubhub, which greatly help in bringing customers to our end. But this surge in our delivery orders also led me to make a change in how we package our food.

Before, we use plastic containers in our restaurant, but with all the things happening around, it made me conscious of how our establishment should bring some positive change for the year. And that’s why we went green and started using eco-friendly materials, especially in our packaging. At first, it was hard because we tried using compostable bamboo containers, which are quite pricey compared to traditional plastic containers. It’s a good thing, though; I was able to contact an online restaurant supply store called Restaurant Smart. They offered me an alternative called PLA compostable containers.

japanese food packaging

PLA containers and disposable utensils look really similar to the traditional plastic containers. Honestly, at first, I couldn’t tell the difference between the two. However, upon research and with the help of Restaurant Smart, I was able to understand that PLA containers are thermoplastic polyester that is made from organic materials such as sugarcane, corn, or cassava. This is why it is safe to throw them since they are biodegradable.

According to Natureworks.com, PLA containers and materials decompose into carbon dioxide and water in 83 to 90 days. Unlike normal plastic, which actually takes 1,000 years to decompose in landfills. Just imagine the effects those can cause in our environment. So choosing to use biodegradable for our restaurant food containers and utensils is a big choice that we were happy to make.

Not only that, but a lot of our customers also gave us positive feedback upon knowing that we’re going green with our food packaging. This is why, for me, I definitely think that restaurant establishments should consider eco-friendly products for their business.