Waste Reduction for the Food Service Industry

Saving Green By Going Green

Kimberley Fenton

Asheville Hospitality Workshop

September 4, 2001

Waste Happens

PURCHASING

General Tips for Purchasing

• Purchase products that are packaged in ways that can reduce the amount of material being disposed

• Work out a program with your supplier to take back the shipping boxes for reuse or recycling, or to purchase and ship in durable containers

Paper Supplies

• Buy products made from recyclable materials

• Avoid polystyrene

• Buy straw type plastic or wood stir-sticks

• Serve straws from health-department approved dispensers

• Use reusable coasters instead of paper napkins

Janitorial & Restaurant Supplies

• Use reusable table linen and durable dishware

• Use reusable ashtrays

• Use roll-type paper towels in your restrooms and at hand sinks instead of pre-cut towels

• Use cloth cleaning towels instead of paper

• Use plastic trashcan liners made from recycled HDPE instead of LDPE.

Beverages

• Serve carbonated beverages from a beverage gun or dispenser rather than by the bottle or can

• Buy bar mixes in concentrate form rather than using ready-to-use mixes.

Grocery Items

• Purchase condiments in bulk containers

• Purchase cleaning supplies in concentrate

• Use multipurpose cleaners

• Use cleanable and reusable hats for kitchen employees instead of disposables

Grocery Items (continued)

• Buy meats in bulk or uncut form and cut to size

• Consider buying eggs shelled in bulk

• Pre-cool steam-table hot foods before placing them in the cooler

• Reuse left-over cream-based soups and sauces within 2 days

• Store leftover hot foods in separate containers

STANDARD SERVICES

Back of the House

• Develop and implement a weekly cleaning and maintenance program for all equipment

• Keep equipment calibrated

• Create incentives for staff to reduce the breakage or loss of your china, glass, silver.

• Place rubber mats around bus and dishwashing stations to reduce china and glass breakage

Back of the House (continued)

• Have employees use permanent-ware mugs or cups for their drinks

• Minimize excess use of trash bag liners by manually compacting the trash in your garbage cans and emptying only when full.

• Check for discarded permanent-ware (e.g. serving trays, silverware) before throwing out dining room trash

Front of House

• Distribute condiments, cutlery, and accessories from behind the counter

• Avoid unnecessary extra packaging at take-out

• Use less packaging for eat-in foods than for food being taken out, or use none at all

RECYCLING

Recycling

• Set up a recycling program for cans, glass, plastics and cardboard

• Place a recycling bin in the quick-service dining area for your customers

• Ensure that your containers are easily accessible

• Avoid contamination

• Train staff continuously.

• Use incentives.

Food Waste Management

• Rotate perishable stocks at every delivery to minimize spoilage (F.I./F.O)

• Scrape leftovers into a food waste container before washing and avoid sending it down the drain

• Contract with a rendering service to recycle used cooking oil, meat, and trap grease

Food Waste (continued)

• Donate excess edible food to a local food bank or food rescue program

• Donate inedible food waste to a licensed “garbage feeder” or compost it

Edible Food Waste

• Edible food waste can be donated to a local prepared and perishable food program

• PPFP’s provide pickup from donors on a daily, weekly, and on-call basis

• Provide trained staff to inspect, handle, and safely transport the food

• Provide liability protection to donor

Inedible Food Waste

• Inedible food waste includes spoilage, preparation waste, post-consumer food waste, food that has been “set out”

• Contact a commercial composting operator to pick up your inedible food waste

• Contact a local garbage feeder who will collect your food waste free-of-charge to feed livestock

• Contact a local farmer who may want to land-apply the food as a soil enhancement

Good Business

• Waste reduction leads to increased operating efficiency and cost savings

Customer Satisfaction

• Consumers have a higher perception of “environmentally conscious” businesses and are more likely to patronize them

Tax Benefits

• Donations to businesses classified as 501 ( c ) (3) [non-profits] by the IRS including a portion of the value of prepared food, may be tax deductible

Boosts Employee Morale

• Team building occurs when staff find ways to work together on projects that benefit the community.

• By putting lower level staff in charge of such projects, it boosts self-esteem

• Happy staff = less turnover

Helps Uncover Waste

• A waste assessment of your facility will help to reveal how much waste actually occurs in your day-to-day operations

Reduces Disposal Costs

• By reducing waste, businesses can reduce the size of their dumpster and/or frequency of pickups

• Food waste diversion specifically can help to significantly reduce your monthly solid waste costs

Gives Back to the Community

• By being a better environmental and corporate citizen, you give back to your community

• Food donation programs can help get edible food waste out of your trashcan and into the hands of those in your community who need it

Good Stewardship

• North Carolina is challenged in maintaining its clean waters, air, and land

• All N.C. citizens have a stake in preserving the environment and a responsibility to future generations to keep N.C. clean and green.

A Win-Win-Win Waste Solution

• Businesses win by reducing their purchasing and solid waste disposal costs and reaping tax benefits

• Communities win by reducing the waste going to landfills and by keeping a cleaner environment

• Charities win by obtaining food and supplies to help those most in need

The Green Plan for Food ServicesMission:• Promote and encourage development of waste

reduction and recycling programs• Reduce the overall amount of solid waste going to

landfill• Reduce food waste going to landfill by promoting

food donation, composting and garbage feeding programs

• Reduce sanitary sewer overflows caused by oil and grease discharges

For More Information

• Visit the Green Plan website at: www.p2pays.org/food

• Contact:

Kim Fenton: kim.fenton@ncmail.net

Norma Murphy: norma.murphy@ncmail.net

• Call DPPEA: (919) 715-6500

DPPEA Toll Free: (800) 763-0136