Ecotainus

Eco-friendly Backyard Barbeque on Fox5 Atlanta

In the midst of all this oppressive heat, it’s a good time to remember that you can have tons of fun while not creating tons of waste. If you’re a believer (ya know, the whole global warming thing), you know that the waste quotient only adds to the issue. With an average person generating over 1.6 pounds of waste during a typical, four hour event, the trash can really pile up if you’re not being a conscious consumer.

So…here are a few tips to green your summer BBQ:

Décor:

• Like linen: first off, using a washable linen of any fabric is a more sustainable option than something that is not (ie plastic). A new option on the rental market is one made from recycled plastic bottles that can be found at BBJ Linen (www.bbjlinen.com).
•  A fun craft project that my pal & famed Atlanta Caterer Dennis Dean (www.dennisdeancatering.com) came up with is turning a piece of burlap into a BBQ banner of sorts that can be displayed at your entrance or on your table as a runner then reused for the Fall holidays. Use a paper stencil or even a wooden letter to paint on your initials, the theme or a special guest’s name. You can find paper stencils at Sam Flax or wooden letters at Hobby Lobby. Any craft paint will work – opt for a natural hair brush.
• Potted & portable: accent your table with potted sunflowers or other potted flowering plants. At the end of your party, turn your potted flower arrangement into a portable, take home gift for your guests to enjoy on their table or in their garden.

Food & Beverage

• From skin to servingware: use everything inside your orange and out to make a delicious citrus fruit salad (add grapefruit & watermelon to add a multi-color dimension that is also delicious). Cut your oranges in half, scoop out all insides, dry skin halves over night at room temperature. Before your party, simply scoop your fruit salad mix into each half and display.
• Turn your cabbage into the container for your bleu cheese cole slaw. Follow standard directions for cole slaw, add organic blue cheese crumbles. I like the 365 organic bleu cheese @ Whole Foods (www.wholefoods.com).  Use the outer layers of the cabbage (red cabbage tends to offer a bit more color) as your cole slaw container.
• Sauce it up: my favorite part of a BBQ is, of course, the sauce. Offer guests a sampling of various barbeque sauces…either as a competition amongst those coming to enjoy the summer festivity or your own favorite finds. In lieu of making your own, explore local options. Whole Foods is great at pointing out who to check out in your local market. I really like the honey, chipotle and classic sauces the Williamson Bros (http://www.williamsonbros.com) from Atlanta churn out. Since guys love a good BBQ – offer take home samples in reusable, glass jars that ensure your sauce is good to the very last drop.
• Buy in bulk – from chips to Coca-Cola, avoid single-serve containers and ensure your generating less packaging waste overall.
• An apple a day: a great summer drink for kids is a simple glass of apple juice served with an apple slice in a Preserve cup (made from recycled plastic). It’s fun and house-friendly (ie not breakable). Available at Whole Foods.
• Local brew: the best way to cut down on your carbon footprint is to buy and support local. Check out your local beverage options from non-alcoholic (Whynatte) to beer (Sweetwater, Terrapin) or spirits (Horné Rum).
• Box it up: turn an empty box into your go-to recycling container and encourage guests to reduce their waste by recycling all of their glass, plastic and aluminum from your summer BBQ.

To view my segment on Fox5 Atlanta, click video below:

So, for all of you who launched into 2010 with a dirty laundry list of resolutions to do and be better…just a little check in to see how you’re faring.

On the top of my list is the quest to convert at least three local retailers I frequent to compostable products to replace their not-so-recyclable plastic and scary Styrofoam. I happy to report I have my first success – my favorite lunch to-go place made the switch. My friend Johnny at Cafe at Pharr in Atlanta took a meeting with the folks from Repurpose Now and I had my first unsweet iced tea in their compostable cold cup. Glorious! Thanks so much Johnny – it’ll be worth the change (in all ways)!

www.facebook.com/pages/Atlanta-GA/Cafe-at-Pharr/120592728788

Well, if you read  one of my recent blog entries, you may think I’m still on the sausage bent….not exactly. We, at eventologie, strive to keep the cycle “alive” even after our events are done and one of my favorite aspects from our recent event at Chase Field in Phoenix for our client, US Green Building Council, does relate back to a pig.

Our friend Chris Garcia, with Global Green Integrators, introduced us to Greg, Brandy and their family at Hoppin Hogs Farm who were the eager recipients of the over 1700 lbs of food scraps from the Welcome event. Knowing that their pigs and other animals at their friendly farm in Payson, Arizona were happily fed with pure food and not processed or antibiotic-filled products made us very happy as well. I think the picture of Red says it all though we did hear that even pigs are picky eaters too – all was eaten except for the onions. I guess he wanted to be “fresh” for his close up.

It’s amazing how much trash a person can generate when attending an event – it’s part of what contributes to the event industry’s rating of second most wasteful industry in the world. One person can leave behind up to 1.6 lbs of waste – pretty shocking. So, to properly and consciously take care of (dispose can be such a nasty word) of our trash from our recent event in Phoenix for USGBC including the food scraps, biodegradables and compostables, we had the tremendous pleasure to work with a great guy named Chris Garcia whose passion for trash is pretty infectious. Chris and his partner, Lisa Perez, co-founded Global Green Integrators (GGI). They  work with local Arizona groups to compost organic material; recycle plastic, aluminum, cardboard, paper, and glass; and to send food waste to a local rescue pig farm called Hoppin Hogs (more about them tomorrow).

Interesting stats: from pre-event set up through the event itself and breakdown, over 1469 lbs of biodegradables & compostables and more than 5243 lbs of food scraps were collected which totals to an astounding 6712 lbs combined. GGI sent the biodegradable and compostable materials to a local commercial composter and the food scraps were picked up by Hoppin Hogs Farm. Untouched, prepared food was donated to a local food bank.

If we all took the appropriate measures to properly take care of the waste we generate instead of just simply leaving it behind what a different world we’d all live in.

Thanks again Chris – our champion, our cheerleader, our friend.

Party themes can come in all shapes, sizes and, we believe, soda cans. Truth be told, we went a little beyond a soda can for inspiration at this year’s Vision for America Dinner, held by our inspiring client Keep America Beautiful, at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History in Atlanta.  As a subtle shout out to the honoree Novelis, a “world leader in aluminum rolling and recycling,”  we took creative license to infuse their product with the mission of KAB (preventing litter, reducing waste, beautifying communities).

During the cocktail reception, renown recycle artist Nancy Judd of Recycle Runway exhibited several of her eco trash couture creations including her aluminum drop dress originally comissioned by Novelis in 2004. Her jaw dropping dresses are fantastic conversation starters and a phenomenal display of how to turn your trash into a treasure. Imagine what a beautiful community we would have if we all repurposed our recycleables into a fashionable frock!

For the dinner tables, we repurposed Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Anheuser-Busch aluminum cans into flowers which sprouted from beds of wheatgrass, based in aluminum containers…a significant and sustainable centerpiece. Smaller versions, placed in soda cans, decorated the hi-boy tables for the cocktail reception. I think it’s safe to safe the guests “took to them” as there wasn’t a one that wasn’t taken at the conclusion of the event. Special thanks to our friend Mark Good with markandscott for the fabulous floral and our pal Courtney who spent tireless hours turning our trash into the evening’s treasures.

Lastly, the generous folks at Novelis gifted the guests with (adorable) aluminum peaches – symbolic both in composition and for the city (Atlanta).

Photos by Ross DeLoach of Northlight Photography