A FARNHAM business has taken the plunge, turning their attention from coffee and cakes to zero waste.

Okomoko, located on Downing Street, previously operated as a vegan cafe, but owner Sam Currie found her passion changed, as the issue of zero-plastic waste became more topical.

“Two local girls ran a pop-up zero waste shop upstairs, but they decided to step back in February last year, so we decided to take over,” Sam told the Herald.

“However, in that period of them coming in November, it just opened my eyes to our plastic usage, the waste that you create in a cafe, the waste you create at home – once your eyes are open to it, you really can’t unseen it.”

Sam decided to close the cafe at the end of last year for a change in direction, but at the time the cafe was “about 95 per cent plastic free”.

Sam explained: “We were recycling everything, putting things in glass jars and tins rather than in bottles, we really changed the whole ethos of it.

“So when we opened our own version of zero waste after the girls left, I felt my passion going more and more towards this.

“And as much as I love the cooking, making the cakes and the catering side of things, I just felt there were enough places in Farnham that were doing vegan, so we thought we could leave that to the rest of Farnham – and we have so much space here, it lends itself to so much.

“So, we just decided at the beginning of this year that we were going to go for it.”

To celebrate the shop’s relaunch, Sam hosted an event on February 8, inviting members of the public to visit the ‘Eco Hub’.

She said: “It was amazing, I think we had about 300 people through the door.

“We had Hannah upstairs doing Reiki and meditations, and Ellie outside selling cakes – which I think she sold out of.

“There were lots of new faces, and lots of returning customers as well. It was a really good event, Farnham has really been so supportive since we made this decision. There was music playing, and a party atmosphere.”

While tables and chairs have been removed from the former cafe, visitors can now expect a vibrant selection of foods, plastic-free toiletries and refill containers for basic home items, such as washing up liquid – as well as a plastic-free gift shop for unique, environmentally-friendly presents.

Okomoko now also plays host to a ‘Wellness Room’, where Sam says an activity will take place “basically every day from March,” and a fashion exchange room, where the public can donate clothing in exchange for a credit, to then spend on clothing in the exchange room.

Speaking of the exchange, Sam said: “We get some amazing stuff coming in here, because people bring it in on a swap basis.

“And we charge the same for all the items, whether it’s Primark or Prada.” And while Sam’s passion for zero-waste is based in the shop, she tries her best to encourage her family to follow the same ethos.

However, with eight people living in her home, she admits it can be “impossible” to be plastic-free all the time.

“We refill all of our containers, I take home food and liquids from here, we use things like bamboo toothbrushes, the toothpaste that comes in a tub, shampoo and conditioner bars, all sorts,” Sam said.

“But it’s inevitable, kids come home from a party with a party bag of stuff, it is just finding the balance.

“We have definitely reduced our plastic at home by at least 50 per cent, and the aim is in the long run to keep on knocking it out and reducing it. It is definitely in the forefront of our minds, but in a practical sense we are not stripping out completely because it is really impossible to actually do it, and I think the people that have done it deserve a medal.”

Sam also spoke of a quote that inspired her, by zero-waste chef Anne-Marie Bonneau.

“There is a great quote by someone in the zero waste world, that said: ‘We don’t need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. We need millions of people doing it imperfectly’.

“I feel I am doing my best at home, and encouraging people to do their best here, which gives me a slightly lighter conscience because I think – ‘I’m doing my bit.’”

Okomoko – The Eco Hub is open from 9.30am to 4.30pm from Tuesday to Saturday, and from 10am to 2pm on Sundays.

Sam asks that anyone wishing to buy a refill brings the correct, clean bottles for the item, reminding customers that “tupperware is OK!”