'Collect it, sanitize it, reuse it': Southwestern Ontario women land on Forbes list for environmentally friendly company
'Collect it, sanitize it, reuse it': Southwestern Ontario women land on Forbes list for environmentally friendly company
A pair of young entrepreneurs from southwestern Ontario is changing the world one reusable container at a time.
At a small facility in Guelph, Kayli Dale of St. Thomas, Ont., and Jacquie Hutchings of Woodslee, Ont., are helping businesses transition from single-use plastics to reusable options.
“Our system is kind of like the Beer Store model where users can get money back for returning their packaging,” said Dale, who met her business partner while they were engineering students at the University of Waterloo.
She added, “We collect it all, sanitize it, and then resell it into the market so products can be used hundreds of times rather than being thrown in landfill.”
Upon purchase of a meal, customers pay a small deposit. When finished they scan a QR code using the Friendlier app, and return the container to a collection bin. Deposit returns accumulate and you can then request a payout.
"Friendlier" is a company which collects, sanitizes, and reuses take out containers to help prevent them from going into the landfill (Brent Lale/CTV News London)
The pair spent four months in Sweden, and with the dream of bringing sustainable products to North America, they formed “Friendlier.”
“When we first started we didn't have much, [so] we funded it ourselves,” said Hutchings of the company which has been in business for two years. “We would bike around from business to business collecting containers and giving new ones. Very quickly we saw that businesses want this, and businesses need a reusable solution.”
With businesses abiding by the new single use plastic ban, and consumers becoming more tired of waste, they've grown daily. They have over 200 partners across the province, and are washing up to 3,000 containers a day.
“We're on track to hit 400,000 by the end of the year,” said Hutchings. “We just continue to grow. So now we're seeing about 50,000 coming back every single month.”
Kayli Dale (L) and Jacquie Hutchings at the Forbes 30-Under-30 event in New York City in Dec. 2022 (Source: Jacquie Hutchings)
Their recent success has been recognized worldwide. The duo was named in the social category of the Forbes “30 Under 30” list, and this past weekend attended the event in New York City.
“They talked about the impact that we've already been able to create,” said Dale. “We've already diverted 350,000 containers from landfill. So I think a lot of it had to do, the impact, where we're going and all the impacts we'll be able to generate in the future.”
At the event, the pair was among some incredible entrepreneurs from all over North America.
“Kayli and I have always been big dreamers,” said Hutchings. “We always knew that it would be possible, but to come in and actually see ourselves surrounded by these incredible people in the Forbes building on Fifth Avenue was amazing.”
Jacquie Hutchings (L) of Woodslee, Ont. and Kayli Dale of St. Thomas, Ont. formed the environmentally friendly company "Friendlier." (Brent Lale/CTV News London)
Friendlier now has a second location in Ottawa with a goal of growing the company worldwide.
“We dream of a world where there is no single- use waste,” said Hutchings.
With the ban on the production of new single-use plastics, and their determination, the two are on the way to helping change the way businesses and consumers feel about the environment.
The 2023 federal budget includes a 'grocery rebate' that will be offered to Canadians with lower incomes who may be struggling with the rising cost of food, CTV News has confirmed.
Flying over the Grand Canyon was a highlight for the Gellisen family during their trip to Phoenix, but their flight home to Toronto was a much different experience, with several family members forced off of the flight over tensions related to a teen's wheelchair.
Lettuce prices are likely to rise next month and could stay high into the summer, agriculture experts say, as flooding in a key California farming area becomes the latest example of extreme weather's effect on the food chain.
Police have identified a teenager who died after being stabbed in an ‘unprovoked’ attack at a Toronto subway station Saturday night, and have charged an adult male suspect with his murder.
An organizer with a group advocating for the rights of migrants in Canada is urging the federal government not to penalize potentially hundreds of international students facing possible deportation over fake school admission letters.
In France, a country that taught the world about people power with its revolution of 1789 -- and a country again seething with anger against its leaders -- graduating from bystander to demonstrator is a generations-old rite of passage.
A 49-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder and assault with a weapon in connection to injuries suffered by a 50-year-old woman in Cambridge.
Worries of a recession in 2023 got another jolt this weekend with former Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz warning the country’s economy is at a greater risk of a “hard landing” – a rapid economic slowdown following a period of growth and approaching a recession. For small businesses, it's a prediction that brings concern.
No injuries are reported after a garage fire in Windsor on Sunday night. Crews were called to the scene near Langlois Avenue and Ellis Street just after 10 p.m.
The 2023 federal budget includes a 'grocery rebate' that will be offered to Canadians with lower incomes who may be struggling with the rising cost of food, CTV News has confirmed.
Flying over the Grand Canyon was a highlight for the Gellisen family during their trip to Phoenix, but their flight home to Toronto was a much different experience, with several family members forced off of the flight over tensions related to a teen's wheelchair.
About 3,000 education workers at Carleton University will strike on Monday after the union and the university failed to come to an agreement by the midnight deadline.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman will be in Ottawa today, with a schedule that includes meetings with Mayor Mark Sutcliffe and NCC officials, and attending the Senators game against the Florida Panthers.
The Canadian Armed Forces is introducing a new housing benefit to help troops find affordable accommodations. A realtor says the benefit won't help military members in Petawawa, Ont.
Police have identified a teenager who died after being stabbed in an ‘unprovoked’ attack at a Toronto subway station Saturday night, and have charged an adult male suspect with his murder.
Montreal police say a fifth body has been extracted from the rubble of a heritage building that caught fire nine days ago, leaving two others still missing.
A Royal Canadian Navy frigate departed Halifax today as part of the federal government's wider strategy of boosting its presence in the Indo-Pacific region.
As the Prince Edward Island election approaches its final week, the Green Party is fighting to hold onto its historic gains from the last provincial vote -- a battle some experts say could result in lost seats.
Nearly five years after the legalization of marijuana in Canada, one local cannabis retailer feels Manitoba should be more proactive and flexible when it comes to regulating pot sales in our province.
Flying over the Grand Canyon was a highlight for the Gellisen family during their trip to Phoenix, but their flight home to Toronto was a much different experience, with several family members forced off of the flight over tensions related to a teen's wheelchair.
The appreciation and respect shown by the public after two Edmonton Police Service officers were killed in the line of duty has not gone unnoticed, their families said in a statement ahead of the regimental funeral on Monday.
The appreciation and respect shown by the public after two Edmonton Police Service officers were killed in the line of duty has not gone unnoticed, their families said in a statement ahead of the regimental funeral on Monday.
The procession for two Edmonton police officers who were killed in the line of duty is scheduled to leave the Alberta Legislature grounds toward Rogers Place at approximately 11:45 a.m.
Lettuce prices are likely to rise next month and could stay high into the summer, agriculture experts say, as flooding in a key California farming area becomes the latest example of extreme weather's effect on the food chain.
A temporary foreign worker from the Philippines who was fired from her job as a caregiver after a cancer diagnosis has been awarded over $45,000 by the BC Human Rights Tribunal.
"Friendlier" is a company which collects, sanitizes, and reuses take out containers to help prevent them from going into the landfill (Brent Lale/CTV News London)
Kayli Dale (L) and Jacquie Hutchings at the Forbes 30-Under-30 event in New York City in Dec. 2022 (Source: Jacquie Hutchings)
Jacquie Hutchings (L) of Woodslee, Ont. and Kayli Dale of St. Thomas, Ont. formed the environmentally friendly company "Friendlier." (Brent Lale/CTV News London)
