Plastic waste is ubiquitous on our planet, from the heights of Mount Everest to the depths of the Mariana Trench. Humans ingest plastic, a credit card’s worth every year at the low end, possibly much more. Haines resident Betsy Van Berg is doing her small part to address the issue. She started the Earth Works Refillery, a small business that orders goods in bulk, and resells them to individuals who bring their own containers to be refilled, circumventing packaging waste.
She was inspired by a store in Anchorage, Blue Market AK that goes by the moto “Refill Not Landfill”
“I got the idea from these two women up in Anchorage that started with a little trailer and took it to the farmer’s market, and it was so popular that they now have this store, Blue Market AK, and it’s very very popular, they keep growing”
She sells oils, soaps, grains, nut butter, a list of about fifty items. As any business, she has to deal with supply chain issues, and not every item is available at all times. She runs the business out of a small cargo trailer.
“Mainly do the farmer’s market with my trailer, it’s set up in a trailer with shelves, and I do that in the summer, and so the winter is a little slower time because I don’t have a storefront”
Because she buys bulk, and doesn’t have expenses associated with maintaining a store, her prices are low. But getting a refill in the winter is not a streamlined process.
“Well you’d give me a call or text me, and I would say do you want me to refill your containers, and if so I would have you drop them off at my pottery studio, and then I would refill it where I have it in a shop at a friend’s house, and I would refill it and give you a call and have you pick it up.”
Her contact number is 907 314 0344, her business can be found through the Haines Community website, under commercial services, with a list of the goods available. Sometimes. Van Berg has a lackadaisical approach to marketing.
“The only advertising I’m really doing is on the Haines community website, word of mouth and at the farmer’s market. When I do the market I try to have my list of food items with me. So yes, advertising is a little on the low side.”
She serves a modest number of customers
“Well in the winter time, it might be three per week, and in the summer time of course the farmer’s market, I mean when I was busy I could have ten or fifteen, so it’s not huge at all, and you obviously get a lot of repeat customers.”
But she feels the endeavor is successful in other ways.
“Yeah the idea was to reduce the waste stream in Haines, hopefully reduce the plastic, level, you know all the containers, even glass too, you know I’ve gotten feedback from people saying that they go through less containers, they have less garbage, even less stuff to take to the recycling.”
Overall Van Berg is satisfied with this level of business, she would order bulk for herself anyways, and already has a day job studying sea lions.
