At the start of 2024, Nokkalan Majakka, now bearing the Nordic Swan Ecolabel, has committed to comprehensive environmental practices ranging from reducing energy consumption to minimizing waste.
Located in Matinkylä, Espoo, the Nokkalan Majakka café-restaurant offers café treats and delicious meals by the sea year-round. In winter, it hosts popular afternoon teas and fondue evenings, while summer is marked by grill menus and live music on the rooftop terrace.
Established in 2016, Nokkalan Majakka is part of Kassiopeia Hotels & Restaurants. Alongside several other Kassiopeia’s restaurants and hotels, it received the Nordic Swan Ecolabel in early 2024.
– We applied for the Nordic Swan Ecolabel because our goal is to provide responsibly and sustainably produced services and experiences. The label supports us in achieving this. It also makes our sustainability efforts visible to both customers and other businesses, explains Salla Eräkare, restaurant manager at Nokkalan Majakka.
The Nordic Swan Ecolabel Driving Environmental Work
The Nordic Swan Ecolabel represents holistic environmental action, covering reduced water and energy consumption, minimized waste, and improved recycling. Additionally, the restaurant offers organic and sustainable food, such as certified fish, uses environmentally labeled products, and trains employees on environmental matters.
At Nokkalan Majakka, the impact of The Nordic Swan Ecolabel is particularly visible in waste monitoring, which helps minimize waste levels. Customers have also welcomed the ecolabel, noticing tangible changes such as an increased number of sorting stations.
– Through The Nordic Swan Ecolabel, we have expanded our range of local products, even though we’ve always aimed to support Espoo-based businesses. We also use the ResQ app to sell surplus food that cannot be utilized later, Eräkare notes.
Nokkalan Majakan ravintolapäällikkö Salla Eräkare ravintolan kattoterassilla.
The Nordic Swan Ecolabel Encourages Also Other Sustainability Actions
In addition to The Nordic Swan Ecolabel, Nokkalan Majakka emphasizes social responsibility. The café-restaurant often provides first summer job opportunities for young people. Many employees start at the ice cream kiosk and later advance to server positions.
– We enjoy hiring people who may not have prior work experience because this type of job teaches a lot through hands-on practice. Nokkalan Majakka is a well-liked workplace; for example, I started here as a server and eventually progressed to restaurant manager, Eräkare shares.
With The Nordic Swan Ecolabel, Eräkare aims to further increase the number of organic products and improve the utilization of surplus food. Both Kassiopeia and Nokkalan Majakka employees take pride in the ecolabel achievement.
– The Nordic Swan Ecolabel demonstrates that our business genuinely strives to operate more responsibly. Each employee here represents the criteria of the label through their work and can proudly explain to customers what environmental responsibility means in practice, she concludes.
For more information:
Salla Eräkare, Restaurant Manager, Kassiopeia Hotels & Restaurants, salla.erakare@kassiopeia.fi
nokkalanmajakka.fi
Facebook: www.facebook.com/nokkalanmajakka
Instagram: www.instagram.com/nokkalanmajakka
(Artikkelin on tuottanut Sonja Mansikkamäki/ Ympäristömerkintä Suomi Oy)
