Christian Lane is on a mission to make the grocery buying experience more community based and less harmful to the environment.  He is the co-founder of the unique grocery chain in.gredients.  in.gredients will open later this year in East Austin, TX and will be the first package-free and zero waste grocery store in the United States.

in.gredients will be a micro-grocery store, less than 2,000 square feet.   The smaller size will help the store manage inventory and keep costs down.  The store will not sell processed food products.  Customers will bring their own containers and purchase what they need from bulk products.   Lane believes that this concept will save customers money in the long run because bulk products are typically 30% less expensive than traditional packaged products.

This model meets the needs of many changing trends in consumption, including: sustainability, eating locally produced foods, and organic eating.  Lane wants to encourage healthy eating and believes that customers can purchase most of their goods at in.gredients even though it is a smaller store.  He is attempting to educate customers about healthy eating and making meals from scratch rather than purchasing processed food.  He is also encouraging customers to walk or bike to the store to build more of a sense of a community store.

Discussion Questions:

1.  Are United States consumers ready for “zero waste” concepts like in.gredients?