It’s almost time for Carmel Christkindlmarkt! You can find the full schedule at CarmelChristkindlmarkt.com. (Photo provided)
HamCo Tourism explains how Christkindlmarkt is doing its part
Ahead of National Recycling Day on Saturday, Nov. 15, The Reporter is featuring a local effort to reduce environmental impact and waste this holiday season.
Set to open next week, Carmel Christkindlmarkt is helping over a quarter million annual visitors reduce their environmental impact. As what has been called “the most authentic German Christmas market in the U.S.,” the Carmel Christkindlmarkt is committed to honoring the German tradition of recycling, and since 2023, the Market has reportedly recycled half of all waste and avoided contamination.
Katherine Couch, Hamilton County Tourism’s Senior Sustainability Manager, spoke to The Reporter about the market itself and the recycling program.
According to Couch, a Sustainability Manager thinks about how we can have a healthy environment so that we can have healthy people and help the economy.
Couch
“We get people from all over the country who come to Carmel Christkindlmarkt,” Couch said. “I know that we’ve also had some international visitors over the years, too. It’s a huge attraction for the community. And I think one of the things people really like is how authentic it is. They’ve really done their research over the years. They have a lot of vendors who are from Germany that come over for this market. It really gets you in the Christmas spirit.”
Couch said Christkindlmarkt’s commitment to recycling is intertwined with the commitment to being authentic.
“In Germany, they have super high recycling rates,” Couch said. “Some of the highest recycling rates in the world are in Germany. In order to engage in that authenticity, they’ve started recycling at the market. I think they started in 2023. They’ve got twin bins. It is really an important first step, having those recycling bins on the grounds and all around so that people have the opportunity to put the right thing in the right bin.”
As an example, if you purchase a cup of hot chocolate, you will get a disposable cup with a plastic lid that is wrapped in a paper sleeve. The plastic lid from your disposable cup would go into the recycling alongside the sleeve of that cup. The cup itself, because it’s paper but coated with plastic or wax paper, gets put in the trash.
Blue recycling barrels and black trash barrels like these will be labeled to help you put the right items in the right bin at Carmel Christkindlmarkt. (Photos provided)
“This year, in addition to supporting the recycling at the Christkidlmarkt, we sponsored waste audits for five of our tourism partners – local businesses and festivals that welcome visitors and help create the experiences that define Hamilton County,” Couch told The Reporter. “Understanding what’s being thrown away, what can be recycled, and how operations can be more efficient is a critical step toward reducing waste and conserving resources.”
2025 is the third year that Hamilton County Tourism has given Christkidlmarkt a grant to support its recycling efforts, which are handled by Republic Services.
“At Hamilton County Tourism we really want a healthy environment to support a healthy economy and a healthy society here in Hamilton County,” Couch said. “That’s the reason that we support folks like Christkindlmarkt and our other festivals and partners in recycling so that we could be good stewards of our environment.”
