A new reusable food and beverage packaging pilot project called ReuseME is launching in Bar Harbor this month. Customers at Coffee Matter Café will have the option of having their food and/or beverages packaged in returnable stainless steel containers. Customers can sign up to borrow containers for free (much like checking out a library book) by downloading the Recirclable app and creating a free account. 

Researchers from the University of Maine worked with the volunteer Reuse Maine Coalition to design and implement the pilot. Local partners include the Town of Bar Harbor, the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce, A Climate to Thrive, and Zero Waste MDI.

"We are so excited to partner with ReuseMe in its pilot program,” said Coffee Matter Café owner Cristina Devora. “Our customers will have the opportunity to be the first on MDI to try out the reusable to-go containers, reducing the impact of disposable to-go items on our coastal community."

Another local restaurant, Cafe This Way, will participate when it opens for the season in May. "I am excited about the ReuseMe project because I have been committed to trying to make a positive difference through my corner of the world at Cafe This Way for some time," owner Susanne Hathaway said. "I have created an a la carte menu to reduce food waste and implemented composting. This project feels like another opportunity to engage, educate and help but more fun because I can be part of a team with UMaine professors, students and fellow restaurants."  

The cities of Bath and South Portland are also launching reusable packaging pilots this month as part of a project intended to explore the potential for reusable takeout packaging to reduce waste, prevent plastic pollution, and save communities and businesses money on the purchase and disposal of single-use packaging. The staff at Recirclable report that Solo Pane Pasticceria Bath has seen very fast adoption of the app.

University of Maine researchers carried out baseline food packaging surveys in the three pilot communities in June 2025, finding that single-use packaging generates significant waste while cutting into restaurant profit margins and municipal solid waste management budgets. Read the baseline survey report here. 

The research project is designed to explore the feasibility of scaling reusable food packaging systems in coastal Maine municipalities where waste prevention programs can reduce damage to sensitive marine and coastal ecosystems. The University of Maine research team is trying to better understand the variables that shape decisions about the adoption of reusable systems as well as those that influence success in specific communities. The pilots are part of a larger, interdisciplinary marine debris reduction project and are funded by NOAA, Maine Sea Grant, and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.

Learn more: umaine.edu/reuseme