Local shop tackles 'food print' in its own style 

• Sustainable shop sells local produce, unpacked, and mostly organic
• Customers buy what they need with no extra packaging, all part of the shop's prize-winning zero-waste policy 

Effecorta, a small shop in the town of Capannori, Italy is a classic example of sustainable, zero-waste shopping. In the shop, 80 % of the products come from within 70 km of the Capannori municipality (the aim is to reach 95 %) and many of the goods are organic.

The shop adheres to the principle of zero waste, including its policy on shopping bags (no plastic) which encourages customers to bring their own. Everything they sell is in refillable, re-usable or/and biodegradable packaging. For its efforts towards sustainability, the shop was awarded a Tuscany Eco-efficiency prize.

Key benefits

The shop sees several benefits of its system:

• It allows every customer to buy according to their needs, rather than in pre-determined weights or packages, which minimises the waste and individual food bills
• It saves the shop from having to check the source and composition of the products because they know they are local and mostly organic (time-saving)
• It reduces the carbon 'food print' of the products because they are transported shorter distances (less 'food miles' means less CO2 emissions)
• It helps to minimise waste generation at home (no waste packaging and less food wastage) which means less cost for each citizen and the municipality