More about food waste in restaurants

Galya Boyanova

Finding ways to reduce food waste has a variety of benefits. It keeps food out of landfill, means there is ultimately less of a market demand for more food, and can help save money. And according to a recent study, investing in reducing food waste can actually help restaurants to make significantly more money.

Food waste in restaurants: Problems and solutions

Prep. Serve. Consume. Restaurant operations seem simple enough. After all, it’s just food, right? But where does it go when you don’t like it? What happens to the wrong orders? Half-finished plates? Ageing ingredients? It’s simple, and you already know the answer. It goes in the trash. This protocol is upheld in the interests of consumer health. And yet, this etiquette has led to a massive oversight in consumption and waste patterns. The chaos of a full restaurant, matched with the logistical nightmare of preparing for a “rush”, has created an abundant waste problem – one with a 161 billion price tag.

Harmful habits with a big impact

At present, the USA wastes 40% of its food each year. Not only does this create an enormous ethical dilemma, it is also extremely expensive. The resources that are poured into food production and transportation are being lost on wasteful habits. If all the work of growing, harvesting, labour and transportation is lost to waste, then so too are the resources that enable the production in the first place. What’s more, food produces harmful greenhouse gases. Landfills are overflowing with rotting food, which releases methane into the atmosphere. Food waste in restaurants has created an environmental disaster – one that will take diligence and commitment to resolve. If 40% of the food in the USA is wasted, then surely Americans are overfed and healthy? Wrong. This is where food waste becomes shameful. What about the hungry and the homeless? America has a food waste problem, but it also, ironically, has a hunger problem. Food insecurity affects many, as they have no reliable source of food. So how have we come to the point where excess food is being tossed out, and hungry mouths are going unfed? It comes down to habits.

Food waste is not limited to restaurants, although they often steal the spotlight because they are literally in the business of preparing food. Consumers also contribute to the problem through misguided and unprepared shopping and eating habits. A lack of education on the matter has led to a gross misuse of products that are still safe to eat, but often end up in the trash. The root of the problem, then, lies in a lack of analysis over habits. Restaurants and consumers must take a step back and explore the ways they use their food.

Here are two interesting initiatives on what to do with food waste:

1. Winnow

Education on food waste still has a long way to go, but some trailblazers have emerged with exciting technology and initiatives to drive change. Marc Zornes, co-founder of Winnow, rose to the challenge when he saw that a change needed to be made in the restaurant industry. “The fear of running out” was and continues to be a motivator for restaurants to over-prepare dishes. Chefs are afraid of losing business or falling behind, so they prep several meals in advance. Often, however, the maths is off by a large margin, and the food is simply wasted. Zornes’ Winnow technology works to combat this behaviour by allowing chefs and kitchen staff to input the items they throw away. Winnow’s scale measures food waste by bin, thus allowing kitchen management to analyze the way they use their food. Winnow’s early adopters rave that the technology has saved them money, and changed the way they view waste.

2. Instock

Another great initiative is Instock, a trio of restaurants whose menus are crafted from surplus supermarket items. The idea for Instock was pitched by three friends, Bart Roetert, Freke van Nimwegen and Selma Seddik. They were devastated at the amount of food that was wasted by local supermarkets. Day-old bread and blemished produce were being thrown out when they could have been saved for consumption. The three wanted to make an impactful statement, so they drove around collecting excess food from local markets. They used that “waste” to make new and exciting dishes that could be served to the public. Instock now attracts the attention of both foodies and earth-friendly consumers. Instock also has an online marketplace where surplus food can be sold to caterers. A school programme was also drafted in conjunction with the Instock initiative. The programme aims to educate young children about smart consumption habits, as well as the dangers of food waste.

There will always be resistance to change. Some chefs are hesitant to rise to the challenge, because they do not want to admit how much food they waste. And then there are chefs who simply do not know what that amount looks like. In other cases, upper echelon restaurants refuse to sacrifice their pride and status. Certain elite chefs want to use only the finest and freshest ingredients in their dishes. They are unwilling to forgo that standard. And so, food waste in restaurants continues to grow.

Solutions for food waste in restaurants

Food waste reduction starts with commitment. Restaurants must dedicate themselves to eliminating waste in every possible way. Below are some tips for restaurant managers, chefs and kitchen staff:

1. Organize your fridge

Move soon-to-expire items to the front of the fridge, and understand that these items must be used before anything else. Invest in smart labelling, and teach one other about stock rotation practices. This will help to ensure that as much food is used as possible.

2. Regulate the temperatures of your food

This goes hand-in-hand with the previous tip. Always make sure your food is properly stored. Inconsistent temperatures will cause your food to prematurely spoil.

3. Go “stem-to-root”

Instead of throwing away the unused parts of your food, find a way to incorporate them into other dishes. For example, use the stalks and skins of fruits and vegetables to create a new side or purée for a dish. You can also use leftover meat and bones to create a delicious soup broth or gravy.

4. Donate surplus

Remember all those hungry mouths? If you have a ton of excess food, consider donating it to a food bank or shelter. Even if you can’t find a way to use your food, someone surely will. Expiring or day-old food can also be sold at a discount, as a way to incentivize consumers to eliminate waste.

The best way to prevent further waste is to understand how it’s produced. Chefs and managers can benefit from analyzing their kitchen’s habits. With a better understanding, new and smarter habits to eliminate waste can be established.

It takes more than one person to make a change of this magnitude. It’s not enough for upper management to analyze and inspect the fridge. The only way this change will happen is if the entire kitchen staff is on board with the initiative. If you are a restaurant manager, consider holding an all-staff meeting to educate your team on the importance of saving food. Once everyone understands the mission, your efforts to reduce food waste will be more successful.

Here is what you can do today

If you’re a restaurant or bar looking to overhaul waste management and transaction procedures, check out software at Glimpse. Their video technology analyzes food and beverage transactions against set standard operating procedures. Discrepancies among the data sets can be used to report noncompliance issues. Their software takes a closer look at how food is used and wasted, and how restaurant and bar staff can better serve their customers. 17

Examples of Zero Waste restaurants

1. Silo in Brighton, the UK’s first and only 100% Zero Waste restaurant

2. Ravens Restaurant, Stanford Inn, California

3. Urbane, Seattle, Washington 4. Blagichka-zero waste, Sofia, Bulgaria

5. Nolla, the first Zero Waste restaurant in the Nordic region

6. Restlos Glücklich, foodsaving restaurant in Berlin, Germany 7. CReeA, Zero Waste vegan restaurant in Tarragona, Spain