Local cafe swaps plastic for eco-friendly alternatives

A local cafe is saying "good bye" to plastic in favor of environmentally-friendly alternatives.

Perks Cafe has two locations in downtown Buffalo, on Elmwood Avenue and Main Street.

The team behind the business puts the community and social responsibility at the center of their business model. For example, they use locally sourced coffee beans and offer vegan and gluten-free baked goods from local bakeries.

The cafe does a lot of to-go business, and a year ago, the team realized they were using a lot of plastic. So they started looking into alternatives.

"Even getting deliveries in, I was like, 'wow, this is a lot of stuff that we're throwing out,'" said Julie Leone, Perks Cafe's Director of Operations and Marketing. "So it's to protect the earth and really sustain the environment that we live in. There's a lot going on and this is how we can do our part in society, or in Buffalo."

The company was able to swap plastic to-go containers and cups for plant-based alternatives. Even the straws are now eco-friendly.

The cafe, is hoping to be completely plastic-free by the end of the year.

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