Ray-Cycling

Ray's actively promotes the protection of our environment. Our recycling program, dubbed "Ray-Cycling", is a very big part of our environmental efforts and has been a model for the City of Seattle and other businesses.

Ray's has been recycling seriously for more than 20 years. Recycling is part of our culture. Our program is outlined in our employee handbook and recycling procedures are part of every employee's initial training. All bins and dumpsters are clearly labeled in English and Spanish.

Most of our recycling happens at two central dish stations in our kitchens that are set up with recycling bins right next to the garbage. Cans, plastic and clean paper go into one set of bins, and glass in another. The cooks collect recycling at their individual stations and bring it to the collection points when it is convenient. In the prep station, vegetables are peeled directly into the compost bin. Cardboard boxes are flattened and put in a bin just outside the kitchen door. All bins are emptied twice a day, so we do not have a smell or pest problem.

Over time, our system has become very efficient, allowing us to recycle about 75% of the waste we produce. Ray's generates about 350,000 pounds of waste each year. We recycle about 265,000 pounds and compost about 42,000 pounds. Our efforts save us $25,000 a year in disposal costs.

Logisitically speaking, recycling is not a huge change in how we do business; it's just a matter of putting waste in one container instead of another. The way we see is that we have to get rid of this stuff somehow, so we might as well do something good for the environment while we are at it. The fact that it is good for our bottom line is a big plus too.

For more information on Ray-Cycling, contact Ray's executive chef Peter Birk at chefpeter@rays.com.