Nichols, Trevor Halifax, News, Nova Scotia 0

The Tare Shop recently released its 2021 impact report , which tracks how much waste the business produced last year, how much it diverted from landfills, along with other ways the B-Corp has impacted the local community.

The shop touts itself as the first package-free bulk store in Nova Scotia. The shop sells traditional foods like nuts, pasta, and dried beans but also stocks products that are tougher to buy waste-free, like cleaners, shampoos, and peanut butter.

Owner and CEO Kate Pepler says she’s wanted to create an impact report since she opened the first opened the Tare Shop in 2018.

“Since we opened our first store in Halifax, we’ve counted the number of cups and plastic bags and containers that we’ve saved from landfills. That’s something that we’ve always done, just because it’s a really cool and a really tangible way for a customer to see the tangible impact that they can have,” she says.

According to the impact report, last year the Tare Shop kept 2,733 cups and bottles; 220,758 plastic bags and containers; 1,077 toothbrushes; 7,221 plastic laundry containers; 3,213 dish containers; and 298 disposable razors out of landfills.

Meanwhile, the business produced 552 kilograms of cardboard; 530 kilos of compost; 169 kilos of garbage; 154 kilos of plastic recycling; and 139 kilos of paper recycling.

Pepler says that translates to about one regular-sized garbage bag and two-to-four recycling bags every two weeks, at each of the Tare Shop’s two locations.

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Pepler says she can’t think of another retailer that tracks its waste like the Tare Shop does. A lot of businesses pay for their own waste management, she says, “so it’s often cheaper just to throw everything in a dumpster.”

That’s a shame, she says, because the practice can have positive impacts on both the environment and business success.

“It’s even just a great starting point for businesses who are wanting to reduce their waste or wanting to even gain an understanding of the waste they create,” she says.

She says getting a handle on the type of waste it’s producing can help a business make decisions about how to cut back. For example, a business producing a lot of compost knows it needs to think about how to address food waste.

“I think it would be a great thing for all businesses to adopt–just seeing the impact you can have in your community can be very empowering,” Pepler says.

She says weighing and tracking waste only takes a few minutes of her team’s time a day but produces great benefits for the business.

“I would argue that it’s great for business because it inspires people to shop with us because they can see that we’re making a difference,” she argues. “They know we are being really thoughtful and mindful of what we bring in.”

Trevor Nichols is the associate editor of Huddle, based in Halifax. Send him your feedback and story ideas: [email protected] .

New Brunswick, News, Saint John

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