Case Study: Carleton College
Back in August 2022, Carleton College first introduced USEFULL, including the Boomerang program, USEFULL’s inventory management technology. Since then, they have saved an enormous amount of waste and emissions. And today, we’re taking a look back at Carleton’s journey implementing USEFULL on campus!
Spring 2022
During the 2021 - 2022 school year, Bon Appétit at Carleton College was using plastic reusable containers. This system was a step in the right direction for reuse, but unfortunately, it had several challenges. Most concerningly, Carleton was losing 50-60% of their plastic reusables each term due to the difficult-to-monitor token system. Not only was this defeating the purpose of reuse, but Carleton had to repurchase new plastic reusables each term.
August 2022
To increase return rates, Carleton added USEFULL’s QR code stickers and inventory management system to their existing plastic containers in Fall 2022 and brought USEFULL cups to campus. And in just the first term, Carleton saw dramatic improvements in their takeout rates! The average rental period was just 24 hours, and Carleton lost less than 1% of inventory, down from 50-60%. This was a significant improvement since they knew that their containers would actually be reused – and wouldn’t end up in the trash.
Carleton was also able to expand to all retail and dining halls on campus.
February 2023
Carleton reached 25,000 checkouts! After a full semester of the USEFULL program, reuse is a staple in Carleton students’ and staff's routines.
August 2023
Carleton fully switched from compostable cups to USEFULL’s stainless steel reusable cups! After a year of using USEFULL’s inventory management system, it was a smooth transition to save even more waste!
December 2023
Carleton checked out over 60,000 cups and containers – keeping 60,000 containers out of the landfill! And USEFULL’s fair and friendly stick policy has ensured that containers go back into circulation quickly! Even though Carleton students have five days to return their containers, students return containers within 30 hours, on average.
Here’s a peek into Carleton’s current savings:
6,600 pounds of trash (heavier than the weight of 330 watermelons)!
185,037 gallons of water (the same as showering every day for 314 years)!
20,845 pounds of emissions (the same as driving from LA to NYC 9 times)!
Carleton’s real-time impact can be found here!
January 2024
In January, Carleton opened their newly remodeled retail space, Sayles Cafe. “I couldn't help noticing that the USEFULL bowl is the ideal serving vessel for many of the menu items,” said Charles Schwandt, General Manager of Bon Appétit at Carleton College. As a result, Carleton included USEFULL’s stainless steel containers with the launch of the new retail space, expanding zero-waste dining to a new part of campus!
We have loved partnering with Carleton over the past year and a half, and we have loved seeing the impact grow both in dining and retail. We have been so impressed by the waste, water, and emissions Carleton has saved, and we can’t wait to see the impacts grow in 2024 and beyond!