India, like many countries, faces ongoing challenges with poverty and plastic waste. As of 2023, about 5 percent of its population — roughly 73 million people — lived below the $3.00 per day poverty line. The country also produces nearly 29,000 tons of plastic daily. Much of it ends up in landfills. A small cafe in the central Indian city of Ambikapur has found a unique way to tackle both problems.
The aptly named Garbage Cafe is run by the Ambikapur Municipal Corporation (AMC). It lets people pay for meals with plastic waste instead of money. For every 2.2 pounds (1 kg) of trash collected, they receive a four-course meal that includes rice, two vegetable curries, bread, and salad. A delicious breakfast of popular Indian snacks only requires half the amount of trash. Since opening in 2019, Garbage Cafe has collected nearly 25 tons of plastic!
The cafe is part of a larger recycling effort run by the AMC to improve waste management in the city. The collected plastic is sent to local waste centers, where it is sorted into over 60 categories. Some materials are sold to recyclers. Others are repurposed for infrastructure projects, such as road construction.
Thanks to these efforts, the amount of plastic waste sent to landfills in Ambikapur dropped from 5.9 tons annually in 2019 to just 2.2 tons in 2024. It is now considered one of India's cleanest cities.
Garbage Cafe has inspired similar cafes across India. These cafes alone will not solve the country's plastic or poverty problems. But they show how small actions can make a big difference for communities and the planet.
Resources: BBC.com, Theguardian.com, IndiaToday.com