Commonfolk's Got Worms

No not those type of worms... ...the ones we've got are the wriggly little critters that make our garden amazing.

At Commonfolk we are always looking for new ways to be green.

We've always considered it our duty to reduce our waste footprint. Initially we kept our waste down by giving away food scraps to our staff and customers for their chickens. However it wasn't until our new Head Chef Phil Edwards came onboard and shared the concept of a ‘Worm Farm’ that we realised there was a viable way to reduce our waste, and improve our garden without having to expose our customers to huge composting bins.

The old pink bathtub that our worms call home.

With the support of local woodcrafter, Steve Morrison, I built our worm farm from a recycled bathtub on site at Commonfolk.

We're really passionate about becoming a zero waste cafe - so it made sense to build our worms a home using recycled materials. Our resident artist Emma Morgan generously offered to paint the external covering pink to match the bathtub. Needless to say we're the proud owners of what is almost certainly the cutest worm farm going around. Commonfolk is now another step towards being a sustainable and ethical business - with the worm farm joining a long list of initiatives we undertake including The Cup That Counts, HomeGround, refugee advocacy, training, 0% waste goal etc.

We're helping Ugandan coffee producers learn sustainable farming practices

Our customers can be assured that the kitchen and cafe team are always taking the steps they can to reduce our waste.

You may see one of our chefs heading out at the end of a day in the kitchen to feed the worms, if you do, feel free to go and say hello to the worms (and the chef!). The idea is that the waste we produce from preparing your meals, goes to feeding the worms, the waste from the worms, goes to feeding the garden and the garden goes to feeding our customers.

A full circle.

Luke Hagel is a chef at Commonfolk, expat Londoner, avid Gunners supporter and a warrior against waste. — Luke Hagel is a chef at Commonfolk, expat Londoner, avid Gunners supporter and a warrior against waste.