On Wednesday (July 4) it declared its independence from disposable takeaway coffee cups. 

Saint Monday owners Lauren Salathiel and Chris McGorlick said while patrons were free to borrow a ceramic mug, they would no longer serve drinks in takeaway cups.

Ms Salathiel said the transition had been in the pipeline for months.

“We’ve always had it in the back of our minds but we’ve been working hard on it since November,” she said.

“We always knew we’d do it and a large part of the reason we’ve been able to is that Yackandandah is such an awesome community in embracing sustainability.”

Ms Salathiel said almost 90 per cent of their patrons had used only reusable coffee cups during the past 12 months.

“When we sat down to look at the numbers we found 87.6 per cent of customers were using reusable cups,” Ms Salathiel said.

“Amongst the local customers that figure would be 100 per cent.”

Ms Salathiel said when they opened the cafe in early 2016 they offered a small mug library.

She said 50 per cent of patrons had used reusable cups at that stage, but it had shot up quite quickly in the following months.

“There’s no denying that our complete and irreversible shift away from disposable takeaway cups is part of a wider cultural shift that has been sweeping its way across our country,” she said.

“You can see it in supermarkets no longer giving away plastic bags. 

“You can see it in the community’s embrace of the ideas behind Plastic Free July. 

“You can probably see it in other cafes around you, as they also turn their backs on disposable cups, straws and packaging.”

Ms Salathiel said the community and visitors alike had embraced their shift to reusable cups.

“It further reinforces this idea that Yackandandah is so far ahead of the game,” she said.

“Visitors walk down the street with one of our ceramic cups and bring it back; it’s a really unique experience.”

Saint Monday’s final few disposable cups were planted with herbs for patrons to take home.

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