Haringey Businesses Join Forces For The Environment

Two local businesses are setting an example to others by launching an initiative to reduce litter and make their corner of Haringey a more pleasant environment for residents and visitors.

The Triangle Restaurant and Londis Supermarket on Ferme Park Road N4 are giving away free environment-friendly shopping baskets to customers in order to tackle the problem of discarded plastic carrier bags and to raise awareness among businesses and the public of how they can do their bit for the environment.

Aziz Begdouri, owner of the award-winning Triangle Restaurant, says: “We want to show how small initiatives such as this can make a difference, and to encourage other businesses to form partnerships and think of creative ways to address the needs of their communities.”

The handmade baskets are produced by a collective enterprise in Morocco that aims to provide a means for disabled people to earn a living, and to halt the decline of the rural population by enabling village people to earn a living and remain in their own communities. This kind of industry is a lifeline for people in a country where there is no real social security system.

“The idea came to me last Christmas, when I decided to hand out gifts to my friends in these baskets”, says Aziz. “They were so well received, and prompted a long evening of discussion on the subjects of recycling, waste, reusing materials and reducing the amount of packaging on products. This got me thinking: I’ve had enough of talking and debating about these issues without actually doing anything; I’m going to do something about those baskets. I will give life to them. I then invited Mr Patel, the owner of the Londis Supermarket next door, for a drink and a chat, and sold him the idea of distributing these baskets to our customers free of charge.”

These attractive and versatile baskets are made of woven palm leaves and come in two sizes. They are ideal for carrying shopping, but can also be used for other purposes, such as laundry or beach bags.

The Triangle Restaurant has picked up the Best Chef and Best Waitress awards in the Hornsey and Crouch End Journal annual Archant Food and Drink Awards in 2007. In 2006 it was named best family restaurant in Haringey in the Journal awards and took the London-wide prize for Best Moroccan restaurant after making the awards shortlist.

For more information visit Thetrianglerestaurant.co.uk.