CHOPSTICKS GIVEN SECOND LIFE AT NEW YO! RESTAURANT

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O! has teamed up with ChopValue UK for its latest restaurant opening in Speke, Liverpool, with a view to a national rollout

–          YO! Speke will recycle every chopstick in the restaurant, with the chopsticks becoming desks, furniture and more

–          Everton footballer Tom Davies is behind the chopstick recycling initiative and joined the team at YO! to support the launch

–          YO! has also developed a special Scouse dish just for Speke

In a first-of-its-kind partnership, YO! has joined forces with ChopValue UK to launch their new Merseyside restaurant as they look to save millions of chopsticks from landfill and instead create incredible new products.

Every pair of chopsticks used at the new Japanese restaurant will be upcycled into beautiful new products for homes, offices and businesses, such as coasters, desks, shelves, and more.

Everton midfielder, Tom Davies, is a Director of ChopValue UK and joined the YO! team at the restaurant ahead of its opening today (5^th December).

YO! is trialling the service in Liverpool – where ChopValue UK has its first microfactory – with a view to rolling the initiative out across the UK should it prove to be successful. Approximately 1.5 billion chopsticks end up in landfill each year so YO! are looking at ways to reduce this waste and instead find a new use for their bamboo chopsticks.

In addition, YO! is introducing a new Liverpool-inspired dish which will be available on launch week as part of a giveaway. The ‘half and half’ sushi roll is coated in Panku crumb and fried until golden, cut in half and topped with YO! fries, drizzled with curry sauce and sprinkled with chives. The recipe celebrates the Liverpool chippy tradition of ordering half rice, half chips and curry sauce.

Everton footballer and ChopValue UK director, Tom Davies, said “It’s our mission to leave no chopstick behind and this partnership with YO! is a massive opportunity to save tonnes of chopsticks going into landfill and instead giving them a new life. It’s important that we all take steps to protect the future of this planet and I feel we all have a role to play in that. I’m looking to use my profile and platform as a footballer to help spark people into thinking about how they can make a difference. The truth is that many chopsticks go to waste unnecessarily, if I can help to stop that then I’m happy to do so. With YO! coming on board with ChopValue we hope we can save millions of chopsticks and give them a second life.”

Victoria Mathers, UK Head of Marketing at YO! said: “We are delighted to be working with ChopValue UK at our new restaurant in Speke. This partnership is a small step in our commitment to being as sustainable as we can be as a company and is a signal to how we want to evolve and ensure we are looking after the planet around us. Bamboo chopsticks can have a second life as a number of products, as the ChopValue team have demonstrated and we’re really excited as to how the partnership here can evolve. Tom may have goals on the pitch but he’s also very passionate off the pitch too about the steps we can all take to be more sustainability focused, we’ve enjoyed working together and long may it continue. We’re really looking forward to welcoming new customers to YO! Speke and have got a menu that will whet the appetite for all”.

The menu is packed full of delicious Japanese cuisine including as a range of sushi, hot street food, curries and more. There is also a wide selection to meet all dietary requirements, with a third of their menu being vegetarian or vegan. 

The new YO! can be found at the New Mersey Retail Park in Speke and opens from 5 December 2022.