The Beyond Waste: Embedding Circular Practices at the Nairobi Street Food Festival

On March 8, 2025, the Nairobi Street Food Festival transformed the Jamhuri Showgrounds’ Main Arena into a hub of culinary delights, electrifying music, and cultural experiences. KEPRO collaborated as the sustainability partner.

The Kenya Extended Producer Responsibility Organization (KEPRO)’s collaboration with the 5th edition of the Nairobi Street Food Festival as a sustainability partner came about in the most unexpected way—over a casual lunch break conversation. Liz, a key festival organizer, casually mentioned the need for a sustainability partner, and without hesitation, I knew we were the perfect fit. What followed was a seamless decision to take on the partnership, aligning KEPRO’s mission with the festival’s growing commitment to responsible waste management.

Let's talk about Kenya’s waste landscape

Kenya produces millions of tons of waste each year, with a significant portion polluting rivers, overcrowding landfills, and posing serious health hazards to both people and wildlife. Events are a major source of waste generation, and without proper management, they only add to this escalating crisis. To prevent further environmental damage, we must rethink how we handle waste at such gatherings.

The Nairobi Street Food Festival has been keen on matters of waste and had already taken steps toward sustainability, but our partnership elevated its impact. One of the festival’s key initiatives was composting food waste—instead of discarding leftovers, they transformed organic waste into free compost for plant lovers attending this event. This simple yet effective solution embodies the circular economy, where waste isn’t just discarded but repurposed into something valuable.

What is the Circular Economy?

The circular economy is about rethinking, reducing, reusing, and recycling to minimize waste and maximize resources. Instead of a ‘take, make, dispose’ model, we shift to a system where materials are continuously repurposed.

But what happens if we don’t act? Kenya’s landfills will continue to overflow, pollution will worsen, and our environment will suffer. However, by making small, intentional changes, we can turn waste into opportunity—creating jobs, reducing pollution, and ensuring a cleaner future.

KEPRO’s mandate in Waste Management

At KEPRO, our mandate is to manage post-consumer waste and support our members in the non-hazardous packaging value chain, ensuring they comply with Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations. Think of EPR as a simple yet powerful principle—“You break it, you fix it.” This policy ensures that producers remain responsible for their packaging long after it reaches consumers, rather than shifting the burden to individuals or local governments.

With the EPR regulations gazetted in November 2024 and set to become law by May 2025, the need for sustainable packaging solutions has never been more urgent. Given that 90% of the vendors at the festival use non-hazardous packaging, KEPRO’s involvement was both timely and essential in driving responsible waste management forward.

A Measurable Impact: Turning Waste into Opportunity

Our intervention at the festival ensured that no waste was left behind. Instead, waste was collected, sorted on-site, and transported to recyclers. The results were significant: 1,809 kg of waste was collected in just one day, with 1,261 kg (69.7%) of that being recyclable.

These numbers tell a powerful story—not just of waste reduction but of job creation, environmental protection, and a thriving recycling ecosystem.

But we can do better. Our goal is to increase post-consumer waste recovery to 100% by encouraging vendors to adopt fully recyclable packaging. Through such efforts, we can build a sustainable waste management system that benefits both businesses and the environment.

A Model for Future Events

KEPRO congratulates the Nairobi Street Food Festival for leading the way in event sustainability and championing circular economy principles. Their commitment to waste reduction sets a powerful precedent for other events to follow.

We believe that circularity should become the norm in Kenya—a cultural shift that ensures waste is seen as a resource, not a problem. Through partnerships like this, we move closer to a future where sustainability is embedded in every aspect of daily life.

Rethink waste. Embrace the circular economy. Together, we can build a zero-waste future.