At Brobacka we think it’s interesting and fun with responsibility for the nature and environment and we always try to come up with new ways to be more eco-friendly. Our vision at Brobacka is to reduce our environmental footprint as much as possible, a vision we are hoping to reach in association with our customers, suppliers and coworkers. We want to run a café and guesthouse business that inspires and engourages our guests to also choose an eco-friendlier alternative.

ENVIRONMENTAL WORK AT BROBACKA

Eco-labelled & locally produced:

Locally produced food and products, especially products from the Åland Islands are something we care deeply for here at Brobacka and we are happy to cooperate with several local companies here on the island.  The flour we use in our bread and cakes is eco-labelled and locally produced at “Överängs kvarn” in Saltvik. Most of our dairy products are from our local dairy industry ÅCA.

Inspiration & encouragement:

In well-chosen places all around the guesthouse and the café there are small frames with information on several ways how to save e.g. water and energy.

Recycling:

There are recycling bins in both of the guesthouse kitchens, which gives our guests the possibility to recycle their trash. There are separate bins for mixed waste, compost, glass, metal, newspapers, batteries and bottles/cans.

“We at Brobacka gästhem do not want to be a part of the problem – but a part of the solution for a more sustainable world and a source of inspiration for others!”

Sustainability policy at Brobacka gästhem

 

Sustainability policy for the café

  • We buy all of our eco-friendly baking flour and eco-friendly oat grains from Överä
  • We use locally produced vegetables firstly from the Åland Islands, secondly from Finland. Our vision is to grow our own vegetables and salad in our own greenhouses.
  • A small part of our eggs we use for baking comes from the owners own chickens. The farm is still quite small with just a handful of chickens but they are free to move around both inside theis shed and outside in the garden. Our vision is to expand the farm so that we could become self-sufficient in eggs.
  • We mostly offer a healthier alternative with less sugar on our cake/pastry-menu, or one raw-food alternative.
  • We always offer on or several vegetarian alternatives on our lunch menu. In the future we also want to offer one or several ”green” alternatives, dishes that are completely free of animal products.
  • We sell our ice cream portions in a glass instead of a paper/plastic cup.
  • You can find several locally produced crafts in our shop made from different craftsmen and women here on the island. You can also find crafts and jewelry made out of recycled glass by the owner herself.
  • We are a retailer for the company Globe Hope. It is a Finnish design company that is creating ”slow fashion” and eco-friendly products (e.g. bags) out of recycled materials.
  • We use recycled paper as wrapping paper for gifts.
  • All of our cleaning products and toilet paper are eco-labeled.
  • The back entrance to the café are handicap accessible.
  • All the chairs and tables in the café are reused.
  • The kitchen tiles in the café are bought from a second hand shop and are reused.

Sustainability policy for the guesthouse

  • 2/3 of the mainbuildings’ frame construction has been moved to the current location in 1925 and is already reused one time. Only local wood and materials from the Åland Islands have been used during the renovation and only such material that are suitable for an old wooden house.
  • We have saved and restored old furniture and other interior decorations.
  • The insulation of all the buildings are made out of recycled paper.
  • The window frames are made out of local wood by local carpenters. The glass is cut and fitted into the frames here in the village Björsby. The inside glass is a ”low-energy glass” that has a much longer lifespan than regular ”thermo glass”.
  • Both the bathroom basins and bathroom cupboards are old, restored and reused.
  • All the cupboards in each guestroom are old, restored and reused.
  • The heat in the house is regulated according to season and is lowered in rooms that are not used at the moment.
  • Most of the lamps in the building are LED lamps.
  • During cleaning we use water and microfiber cloths, no chemicals. We use liquid soap dispensers in both the guesthouse and the café.
  • All of our cleaning products and toilet paper are eco-labeled.
  • A wood heated sauna is available to the guests. A fireplace is located in both the guesthouse and the café and can act as an alternative heating source depending on season.
  • We have 5 bicycles for rent, which allows guests who travel without a car but also those who do, to explore the Åland Islands in a more eco-friendly way. A basket for the bicycle can be added if one wants to go to the store.
  • Bus timetables are available to the guests and we have got a bus stop just outside the guesthouse. The staff know the routes and can inform the guests the best way to get to or from the guesthouse.
  • We have got a rowing boat for rent. In the future we also plan on having a couple of canoes for rent.
  • Our guests can recycle their trash in both of the guesthouse kitchens. Information about recycling is located on the info board that is found in every guestroom. In the future a larger compost is planned to be built at the owners’ house so all of the compost waste from both the café and the guesthouse can be taken care of and then be returned to the garden as high quality soil.
  • For guests who stay here for a longer period of time, the bed linen and towels are automatically changed once/week. If the guests wishes the change to be made more often there are small ”cleaning”-signs in every room that can be hung outside the door. Information about our work and wish to become a greener guesthouse is available in both bathrooms. The information also implies our wish that our guests would be more than welcome to use their towels more than once.
  • In well located places around the guesthouse, short information can be found on how the guests can save e.g. water or energy and participate in our environmental work while they are staying with us.
  • We have made our own storage bags for groceries out of recycled materials. The bags are available, as an alternative to plastic bags, for the guests whenever they want to go grocery shopping.
  • A map containing all the information about our work for sustainability and the environment, available to both guests and employees, can be found in the common living room in the guesthouse.