“Just switch off the lights in a hall for ten seconds and activate a LED that blinks every second for ten times in a row. The Co2 saved in those ten seconds is irrelevant compared to that used for recycling a discarded paper napkin”. Fabric versus paper. Reusability to be preferred over use and toss. Made in Italy that beats the most anonymous and globalized disposable products. An important and efficient example, that of the LED. Engineer Luciano Miotto, president of EXPOdetergo masterfully used it to immediately capture the attention of all invited guests sitting at the tables for the “Notice the difference?” luncheon arranged at Circolo della Stampa di Milano (Milan Press Club).
In terms of going beyond the boundaries of the sector to raise public awareness of the virtues of textiles and the no less important ones of the Italian Industry, the initiative proved to be great success indeed, to the absolute delight of those who promoted it: EXPOdetergo, Assofornitori and our own Detergo magazine, in joint collaboration with Fiera Milano.
Led lights, fabric tablecloths and paper napkins were used to build parables capable of winning over both trade and general interest news publications and spur them to effectively convey the “Notice the difference?” message to the general public. Ansa, Giornale, Il Giorno, Giornale di Brescia and TgCom were on the forefront of the multitude of journalists from general and specialty daily, weekly, monthly, and periodical news publications attending the event, who will publish the message in their forthcoming issues.
Everything on the Circolo della Stampa luncheon menu, and not merely on the food menu, was top quality. Ambiente Italia, a renowned scientific authority, was the source of yet another remarkable parable: “If for one year all restaurants in Florence – only one of the many art cities and tourist destinations in our beautiful Italy – were to wash and reuse fabric table linens instead of recycling single-use products, this would mean saving 3,600 tons of greenhouse gas, the equivalent of stopping motor vehicle traffic for 36 hours”.
It is easy to understand how these numbers and analyses can be grasped by those outside the trade. A message already conveyed during a similar lunch organized last October on occasion of the Host expo, which found even more enthusiastic supporters within the luxurious neo-classical halls of the Bocconi Palace. An overall effort which, in view of the forthcoming EXPOdetergo event to be held in October at Fiera Milano, aims to build around the theme of textiles and haute cuisine a network of media and cultural synergies that encompasses not only businesses and the media, but also cultural and specialty associations capable of setting trends, and which have already expressed their support of the campaign, such as SlowFood, Cipas, (Hotel-Restaurant consultancy and training company), Amira (Italian Maitre Association) and Team Venezia Chef.
Hence it is not by chance that food and nature will be at the center of the much awaited Expo 2015 scheduled to open its doors in Milan, less than one year from now. A noteworthy preview of EXPOdetergo, the historically important event that next October will communicate the most important message of all others tied to the world of laundry: the importance of textiles as a healthier and more durable 
alternative to single-use linens for the restaurant sector. This was also proven by the “Life Cycle Assessment” research study conducted by Ambiente Italia in 2011 on behalf of Consorzio Lavanderie Toscane, to evaluate the life cycle (raw materials procurement to production, use and end of life) of reusable fabric tablecloths and single-use paper tablecloths used by hotels and restaurants in the Municipality of Florence from an environmental performance standpoint.
The results showed that, among other things, the environmental performance of fabric tablecloths exceeded that of paper tablecloths starting as of the 21st wash cycle, less than a third of the overall wash cycles textiles can withstand prior to being discarded. Moreover, fabric table linens provide savings of 80% in non-renewable raw material costs, 60% in non-renewable energy sources, 55% in greenhouse gases and generate 70% less waste.
Numbers and trends that further endorse the purpose of luncheons such as that of “Notice the difference?” which raises the question and fosters awareness and an even more open debate in the immediate future.
“Notice the difference?” was a hugely successful luncheon and event, as borne out by the list of publications and independent journalists in attendance
AMIRA ASSOCIAZIONE MAITRE ITALIANI ALBERGHI/RISTORANTI – “Ristorazione&Ospitalità” – Romano
• ANSA – Mauro Cortesi
• ASSOSECCO – Gabriella Platè
• ASSOSISTEMA – Carlo Pestelli – Patrizia Ferri
• BIOECOGEO MAGAZINE – Iris Corberi
• CIPAS CONSULENZA FORMAZIONE ALBERGHIERA RISTORATIVA – MANAGERIALE – Giancarlo Pastore
• CORRIERE DELLA SERA – Felice Fava
• ECOIDEARE – Nicoletta Cova
• • GIORNALE DI BERGAMO – Luciana Santini
• GLAMOUR – Stefania Ragusa
• HOUSE ORGAN DELLA CAMERA DI COMMERCIO MILANO –Chiara Blandino – Carolina Di Domenico
• IL GIORNALE – Alberto Taliani
• IL GIORNO – Sandro Neri
• L’AMBIENTE – Ranieri
• LIBERO – Fabio Santini
• MIXER
• MIXER PLANET
• MYSELF – Rossella Venturi
• OGGI – Enrica Belloni
• PANORAMA – Gigi Radice
• SLOW FOOD MILANO
• STILE&DINTORNI – Francesca Zanocchio
• TEAM VENEZIA CHEF
• VANITY FAIR – Maddalena Fossati
• YOUIMPRESA.IT – Alessandra Lupis
Two articles mentioned in our story are available on line in their entirety.
Tessile, più si lava più si difende l’ambiente
http://www.ilgiornale.it/news/expodetergo-1016727.html
Le tovaglie di carta inquinano troppo: quelle in tessuto sono più green
http://www.tgcom24.mediaset.it/green/2014/notizia/le-tovaglie-di-carta-inquinano-troppo-quelle-in-tessuto-sono-piu-green_2043264.shtml
The article published in il Giorno is not available on line; if interested, please contact Detergo with your request – info@detergo.eu
