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 landapply 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) [nonprofits] 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 Services
Mission:
• 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