CVSan: CV Natural Grocery’s New Zero Waste Liquid Soap Machine

Castro Valley Natural Grocery (CVNG) has taken a huge step to help reduce waste in the community. Castro Valley’s newest grocery store recently installed a zero waste liquid soap dispensing machine that allows customers to buy common household cleaning products in bulk. Customers can now dispense their preferred soap directly into refillable containers, preventing thousands of disposable plastic packaging containers from entering the waste stream each year.

The machine provides bulk soap in four varieties – hand soap, dish soap, laundry soap, and/or all-purpose cleaner. To use the machine, customers follow simple prompts on the touchscreen to select their soap and size. Then, customers dispense the product into their chosen container with the push of a button. The purchase is completed at the register along with anything else in their shopping cart.

The installation of this machine was a true collaboration. CVNG partnered with Re-Up Refills Shop, a thriving refill business based out of Oakland, and Pureturgent, a woman-owned brand selling biodegradable soaps. CVNG also partnered with Castro Valley Sanitary District (CVSan), who provided a grant to partially fund the purchase of the machine. The liquid soap dispenser machine is an excellent step toward reaching CVSan’s goal of Zero Waste by 2029.