Mullingar 'zero waste' shop reopens today
It’s a great week for Mullingar’s eco-conscious shoppers - not only is Monday ‘Earth Day’ but it also brings the return of The Refill Mill!
The Refill Mill is a ‘zero-waste’ shop, supplying a range of products that use little to no packaging. This enables customers to reduce or even eliminate single-use plastic from their shopping experience. Food products are sold by weight - bring in your own container and just buy as much as you need, whether its 50 grams or 500. Detergent and washing-up liquid containers can be re-filled over and over again, thereby re-using the plastic bottles and keeping them out of the waste stream.
The customers of this one small shop in Mullingar, in fact, have kept over 10,000 plastic bottles in circulation, re-inforcing the message that one small change can make a difference. The Refill Mill also carries a great range of sustainable cosmetics and refills, and is a former winner of the Leinster Eco-Retailer of the Year, so is well-known even beyond the borders of Westmeath. Indeed, no matter who’s in charge, the shop always puts Irish producers first, whether it’s soap from right here in Westmeath, toothpaste from Clare or candles from Dublin. By shopping at the Refill Mill you can reduce single use plastics, food waste, carbon footprint while saving money and supporting the Irish economy all at the same time!
The Refill Mill, in its short existence, has also become a community hub. As a venue for workshops on sustainable practices such as soap-making, seed saving and eco-cleaning, it rapidly became a place for like-minded people to meet and share experiences, and expertise, and indeed whole community groups such as Mullingar Climate Action Network have arisen from that and gone on to turn talk into action.
Eibhlin Fitzpatrick, the original owner, made the difficult decision to cease trading earlier this year. There was genuine distress and disappointment at that news among the shop's loyal customers, including Mullingar native Kim Darby. Recognising the need for the service, and the seeming void being left by the shop's closure, Kim decided to make the bold move to take on the challenge of running the business herself.
Obviously the ‘New’ Refill Mill will take on some of the aspects of Kim’s personality, as it did with Eibhlin’s, so some change is inevitable over time. For example, Kim is well-known locally as an experienced Yoga practitioner so will be leading classes and sessions in the space above the shop; keep an eye on the website at www.therefillmill.ie for details and times. The central ‘mission’ of the shop remains unchanged though, and customers can be sure of a warm welcome and that all their favourite items will be back on the shelves in the coming weeks, without the excessive amounts of plastic to be found elsewhere.
The popular online shopping facility will also be returning in the very near future. For right now, the important thing is that Mullingar still has this genuinely ‘green’ gem of a shop!
The community aspect of the shop continues with upcoming Workshops, including a jam jar flower-arranging class with long-time contributor Anna Browne in June (bigskyflowers.ie for details) as part of the ‘Lake County Learnings’ series, supported by Westmeath County Council Arts Ooffice.
Some readers may also know Kim through her love of Irish Dancing, which is grounded in respect for culture &and tradition. She's keen to expand the Refill Mill community by facilitating the sharing of skills in the arts, crafts, and music of all cultures.
To mark the occasion of the re-opening of the Refill Mill there will be a full day of events, talks, and workshops on Saturday the 27th of April so be sure to follow @therefillmill_mullingar on Instagram for details. Enquiries via email to: info@therefillmill.ie