The past year of a pandemic-initiated rise in takeout and delivery has meant more single-use containers and restaurant food packaging filling up waste bins all over the city.
Unfortunately, the vast majority of these are actually non-biodegradable plastics and borderline unrecyclable materials that the City does not have a program to do much with.
In the last year and a half, restaurants in the GTA like Toronto PHO have faced a number of challenges in finding ways to create revenues despite the fact that on any given day new restrictions make it almost impossible. Understandably, a lot of attention in our industry has been put on profits as opposed to the rising costs of waste takeout containers and delivery food packaging – both economically and from an environmental standpoint.
Even though Toronto PHO has struggled like many other restaurants to make ends meet we could not deny our contribution to the city’s landfills. When we actually did the math and saw how many takeout containers we were sending out on a monthly basis, we were very uncomfortable with the numbers we had arrived at. We did not want this to be our environmental footprint, we did not want to be remembered for our great food but also our great waste contribution.
Although we’ve always done our part to be as environmentally friendly as we can be, delivery and takeout have prioritized things like speed, convenience, accuracy, and the customer’s experience above what sort of packaging was used. Fortunately, we’ve changed.
Introducing Eco-Friendly Packaging From the Best Pho Restaurant in Toronto
Toronto PHO has taken a close look at how we do business and we’ve recently made several changes to our day-to-day.
It’s our duty as a local restaurant to ensure we’re maintaining environmentally sustainable practices at every touch-point, including takeout and delivery. In an effort to do this better, we’ve rebranded our packaging and have switched materials to eco-friendly recyclable paper. Here’s why.
- Paper is biodegradable and easily recycled, eliminating the waste that would normally find its way into waste bins.
- Paper takeout and delivery food containers are made from predominantly recycled paper with a small percentage of virgin pulp mixed in.
- This helps Toronto restaurants like us to navigate around the use of non-biodegradable plastics which are not only a huge issue in terms of waste management but also can potentially leak chemicals when exposed to high heat. Paper poses no such risk on either count.
- Paper can be recycled 5-7 times over without the fibers breaking down. Other than perhaps aluminum, there is no material that is as eco-friendly and environmentally sustainable as paper in the scope of takeout containers and food packaging.
Our new paper packaging also marks a collaboration between our PHO restaurant and local Toronto artist Leslie Phelan. You may have noticed the illustrations on each box, bowls, and take away bags any time you’ve ordered a meal from Toronto PHO.
The work of Leslie Phelan on our takeout containers has received a lot of attention online and rightfully so. She was really able to captured the essence of Toronto PHO and has carried on that spirit to every piece of art she’s created for us. She’s an amazing artist and we are thrilled to have her artwork featured on all of our food packaging for everyone to enjoy.
What You Can Expect When You Order Takeout or Delivery Pho in Toronto
Toronto PHO has continued to optimize how we do pho delivery in Toronto. When you put in an order, you can rest assured we’ll use eco-friendly paper packaging, and your order will arrive quickly and accurately.
There are dozens of varieties of pho to choose from at Toronto PHO, not counting the other Vietnamese-influenced dishes we offer. From the paper boxes and packaging down to our delivery times and the quality of the foods we cook, we aim to please. This is what we believe makes us the best Vietnamese pho restaurant in Toronto.
Are you looking to order pho for delivery in Toronto – give us a call! Toronto PHO is open year-round, providing delivery and takeout to customers across the GTA. Check out our website, request an order for your favourite bowl of pho, and we’ll have it on its way in no time. You can see first-hand our new paper packaging and the illustrations that adorn it.
Toronto PHO would like to send a big thank you to Leslie Phelan for allowing us to borrow her creativity and to our customers for supporting this move to a more eco-friendly way of doing takeout and delivery in Toronto.
It’s time for a major shift. It’s time for change. We’ve listened to the experts. We’ve listened to our customers. Paper packaging is what we use now. And soon we will be completely eco-friendly.
Toronto Pho is a family-owned restaurant serving the best pho and late night eats. Search for Best Pho near me , you will find one of our 4 locations across Ontario, we offer fast delivery and online ordering for pickup or delivery through our easy to use app available for both Android and iPhone smart phones.
