The nation’s first package-free, zero-waste grocery store is opening this fall in Austin, Texas.
The store, in.gredients, touts its unique business model as the "next step" in solving a variety of problems in today’s food industry.
The store promises to be an alternative to supermarket-style shopping, featuring local, organic food products, offering cooking classes and gardening activities on-site, and hosting a variety of community-oriented events geared toward promoting healthy living.
"Truth be told, what’s normal in the grocery business isn’t healthy for consumers or the environment," in.gredients co-founder Christian Lane says. "In addition to the unhealthiness associated with common food processing, nearly all the food we buy in the grocery store is packaged, leaving us no choice but to continue buying packaged food that’s not always reusable or recyclable. Our goal is to reduce waste and promote health by ditching packaged and overly processed food altogether – revolutionizing grocery shopping as we know it."
Customers will be encouraged to bring their own reusable containers to fill with local and organic groceries ranging from dry bulk and dairy to wine and household cleaners. And the store will feature gardens and on-site composting.
The company says the new store will challenge typical supermarket behavior, claiming impulse buys, out-of-season produce, and a lack of concern for waste contribute to unhealthy eating and spending habits amongst consumers.
in.gredients’ business model will counter these trends by encouraging portion control, seasonal eating, and reducing the energy used to transport food from farms to customers.
"We care about the health of our customers and our local food economy," Lane says. "We’re prioritizing ‘reduce, reuse, then recycle’ and maximizing farmer revenue. We want this to be a fun and insightful experience for everyone, and hope this can springboard new ideas about how we can make grocery shopping even more sustainable."
The East Manor location in Austin will host the first store because of its access to multiple modes of transportation and proximity to areas "underserved" by healthy food markets.
"We want to bring back the neighborhood grocer and get into areas where good food is missing," Lane says.
The company is using the crowd-sourcing site indiegogo.com to raise funds for the initial store and is roughly two-thirds of the way towards its goal. A grand opening date will be announced later this month.
"Throughout the campaign, the store has received a significant amount of positive feedback – and requests to open more stores across the country," says the company.
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