2019-03-22

Celebrating World Water Day

As part of our triple bottom line philosophy to balance the environmental, social, and economic considerations of operating our restaurants, Café Yumm! is committed to supporting water conservation efforts, organic farming, and access to clean drinking water.

Protecting watersheds across the Northwest allows ecosystems to thrive while safeguarding drinking water in our communities. To address our impact on this indispensable resource, Café Yumm! restaurants support agricultural and landscaping practices that reduce chemical fertilizer and pesticide use, as well as reducing our overall water consumption at each Café Yumm! location. We also partner with nonprofits that work to conserve fish habitat, restore riparian zones, and promote environmentally friendly food growing techniques.

Because fresh drinking water is essential for maintaining wellness, Café Yumm! provides free local filtered water to all restaurant guests. Even if you aren’t dining with us that day, we encourage filling up your canteen with some of the best water in the country any time you visit. We also offer pure bottled rainwater harvested in Oregon for guests on the go. This sustainably collected water comes to us from a rain farm in the Pacific Coast Range that is filtered 5 times and then bottled in oxo-biodegradable packaging.

Here are a few of our water project highlights!

McKenzie River Trust – Through a collaboration with our franchisees, Café Yumm! has become a sustaining business partner for the McKenzie River Trust. The Trust works with hundreds of businesses and community members to purchase and manage sensitive lands along the McKenzie River in order to conserve clean drinking water, protect salmon habitat, and preserve river access.

Certified Organic Ingredients – Each year, we grow our certified organic Black Turtle Beans and certified organic Red Yumm! Beans™ on farms in the Northwest. Working with local farmers to grow our beans with organic methods allows us to enrich the land while ensuring a fresh supply of beans for your favorite Yumm! Bowl® without the use of synthetic pesticides and chemical fertilizers.

Trout Friendly Certified – We partner with environmental organizations, including the Long Tom Watershed Council, to certify that landscaping at several of our locations reduces water use, employs fish-healthy pesticide and fertilizer methods, mitigates runoff, and uses native, drought-tolerant plants to please both our restaurant guests and pollinators. In addition, Café Yumm! relies on another Trout Friendly Certified business to help us source sustainable solutions for our printing needs. QSL Print Communications’ commitment to environmentally conscious operations and eco-friendly materials helps us reduce our impact on the watershed with every print project.

Water Reclamation – One of our restaurants opened in Portland’s eco-friendly Lloyd District development. The buildings feature a system where wastewater from 657 homes (sinks, toilets, showers, and laundry) is processed and cleaned by a high tech, sustainable filtration system. This reclaimed water is returned to the community for landscaping and sanitation uses. The rest of the water is so clean that it can be released into the groundwater.

Celebrating World Water Day