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SCMP Reporter

Major  Japanese restaurant chains in the city have joined forces in an 'anti-waribashi movement' that seeks to reverse a decades-old practice of using throwaway chopsticks, because of environmental concerns.
Twelve sushi, beef bowl and Japanese noodle shop chains with a total of 140 outlets  will  switch to  reusable chopsticks within a year.
Among them are such big chains as Yoshinoya with 35 branches; Genki Sushi,  31 branches; and Genryoku Sushi,  19 branches.
Their decision is seen as a victory by Friends of the Earth, the group that runs the 'No more disposable chopsticks' campaign. They hope other fast-food shops will follow suit and reduce the use of disposable cutlery.
Throwaway chopsticks, or waribashi, are a Japanese invention that have been commonly used in Japanese restaurants for decades. But  in recent years, with a growing awareness of environmental protection, they have been linked to deforestation and a wasteful lifestyle.
Friends of the Earth estimates show that a whopping 80 billion pairs of waribashi are used globally every year, mostly by diners in China,  Japan and Taiwan.
Friends of the Earth environmental affairs officer Michelle Au Wing-tsz  said: 'Many restaurateurs thought diners liked using one-time throwaway chopsticks because they are clean.' But that was not necessarily the case. 'That could be due partly to the low quality of the waribashi made from bamboo.   More often, improper storage in wet and dark places can cause the growth of mould on chopsticks.'
A Friends of the Earth survey  in July found that about 70 per cent of the 529 diners interviewed supported sushi shops switching to  reusable chopsticks. And 52 per cent said the use of disposable chopsticks would not boost their confidence about the sanitary condition of a shop.
Genryoku Sushi joined the anti-waribashi campaign as a trial last month.  Waribashi have been replaced by plastic chopsticks for dine-in meals. And for take-away orders, the sushi restaurant is asking customers whether they want disposable chopsticks.
'Some 60 per cent of customers  choose not to take disposable chopsticks for take-away,' Genryoku Sushi spokesman Frederick Che said.  'We guess most of them are taking  the food home to eat, where they don't need  disposable chopsticks.'
Assuming each customer used one pair of waribashi, Mr Che estimated the sushi chain could use as many as 300,000 pairs every month. But  it was too early to say  whether the switch would  cut costs, he said, because washing reusable chopsticks required  water and manpower.



Restaurants open door to reusable chopsticks