Golden Arches are Going Green

Golden Arches are Going Green Apr 8, 2015

By Janice Valverde

I'm lovin' it! I just learned that MacDonald's is very serious about going green.

In a webinar on Net Zero buildings on April 6, a MacDonald's executive revealed that the ubiquitous fast food chain will probably build a prototype Net Zero restaurant in a few years.

For now, they are prioritizing potential energy efficiency measures suggested by findings of a recent study of their operations. The study, released Jan. 30, was done by the energy world's renowned think tank, Rocky Mountain Institute, along with the New Buildings Institute, and Fisher Nickels, Inc., a company specializing in commercial kitchen energy efficiency and appliance performance testing.

Net Zero buildings, sometimes called Net Zero Energy buildings, produce at least as much energy as they consume on an annual basis. The High Performance Building Council, the New Buildings Institute, and the usual suspects on the east and west coast, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the State of of California are abuzz with this idea.The U.S. Department of Energy is, too, and it will soon release a standard definition for Net Zero building.

A Pleasant Surprise Frankly, I was surprised that MacDonald's was already on board. It isn't the first company that comes to mind as a pioneer in the world of energy efficiency and

forsaking fossil fuels. But the bottom line IS the bottom line, isn't it? Energy efficiency makes extremely good business sense. Why wouldn't MacDonald's get on board when it has 35,000 locations worldwide?

The MacDonald's study uncovered tremendous opportunity for Net Zero buildings, according to Roy Buchert, Global Energy Director at McDonald’s, who spoke at the webinar. Some of that potential could be realized through "instant on" grills or fryers that are only on when they need to be used, for as long as they need to be used. Induction cooking is another possibility. Capturing heat from kitchen equipment would also help the cause, Buchert said. Most of the energy used in a MacDonald's-­‐-­‐about 54 percent-­‐-­‐is used in the kitchen.

The biggest piece of the puzzle is adding solar panels to the buildings. The most expensive piece, yes, but with incentives and the possibility of participating in community solar programs, it could still be attractive, Buchert said.

Potential problems are working out how to finance transformations of existing buildings, 90 percent of which are franchised and not corporate owned. And using solar panels necessitates more land use. But MacDonald's is apparently committed enough to the idea to work through these problems and come out on the other side with super energy efficient restaurants.

Watch Out for Those Solar Panels!

Ever seen pictures of the earliest MacDonald's that had large flat roofs with extended overhangs (where I used to imagine flying saucers could land, for some reason)? Then it should be easy to visualize the look of future MacDonald's. (Only now they'll have a layer of PV solar panels attached to those oversized flat roofs, so aliens will have to land somewhere else!)

Check out the Rocky Mountain Institute's website for more on this subject.