Some things are essential when it comes to a business’s effort to track down waste patterns and eliminate their origins. One of the most influential things an enterprise can do to minimize its environmental footprint is to train employees to manage trash better. Restaurants, eateries, groceries, and similar spaces are some of the biggest contributors to waste, contributing to the almost 2BN tons of industrial waste resulting annually around the globe.
The reasons why you’d want to do this are endless and go beyond complying with local and national rules and regulations regarding sustainability and trash management. For instance, by becoming a leader in sustainable waste management, you’ll attract more reliable and powerful stakeholders. Everyone wants to do business with a company that’s held in high regard and attracts the public through its healthy and community-oriented endeavors.
This being said, understanding the food waste problem is the first step to eradicating this issue in your business. If you’re reading this blog, chances are that you’ve already acknowledged this matter and want to familiarize those in power to make a change with the impact of improper waste management, as well as the benefits that healthier such practices can bring about.
Break Statistics Down
Possibly one of the most effective ways to show someone the impact of an action is by allowing your employees to learn facts about the industry they are active in, which could make a considerable change. A great example can be something they do on a daily basis, namely handling trash like paper, plastics, aluminum, and so on. Studies demonstrate that out of the entire amount of waste made by the hospitality and tourism industries worldwide, between 6% and 40% consists of cardboard and paper, followed by plastics with a 5%-15% share.
Now, considering how high the figures are, it shouldn’t be a shocker that organizations want to make the most of this phenomenon and capitalize on it, all for a higher purpose. Statistics bring to light the harshness of the food waste problem in this industry. As per the Food Waste Reduction Alliance, between 4% and 10% of the food restaurants buy is unused before consumers get to it.
Experts from Mil-tek indicate that future-oriented businesses should not remain complacent simply because they succeeded in reducing the figures for the waste they generate and mishandle. There are money-making opportunities that slip many entrepreneurs’ minds when it comes to trash handling, such as compacting it and reselling or donating the solid outcomes to other organizations. How can such a multifaceted undertaking benefit your business, you may ask?
Well, businesses that manage to position themselves as leaders in the sustainable waste management area can enjoy more customer respect, boost their chances of attracting new client categories, and increase the likelihood of closing lucrative contracts with influential stakeholders.
A business’s reputation is directly linked to its performance and longevity, which is why you don’t want to take things like waste management lightly, nor are your employees advised to do so only because they may have less decision-making power.
Get to The Root of The Problem
Now that your employees know your environmentally oriented commitments originate from real-world facts and can actually impact the communities and the business’s performance positively, it’s time to get to the root of the issue.
Food waste is pretty much any uneaten, lost, or discarded edible, which is common in eateries and occurs at any activity stage. From prepping to serving, food is being lost during every stage, equaling unused money and labor.
Economically, this represents a problematic source of lost time and money given the lack of utility behind the activities that lead nowhere. Why would you throw food away when it can be transformed into something valuable, such as compost?
Despite the preponderance of eatery food leftovers, organic waste values fortunes. Leftovers can be recycled into many valuable things, donated, repurposed, and so on. It’s just a matter of organizing tasks better and creating some space for giving trash new purposes, possibly assigning a person with such tasks.
Set Up New Policies
Putting together a straightforward policy on food waste diminishment is essential for eateries striving to reduce trash and the generated costs. In this regard, a proficiently created policy can be the guiding light for the whole crew, highlighting exact objectives, duties, means, and so on, all to reach the same unitary goal. Such a strategy can make sure that everyone, from kitchen staff to upper management, realizes the need to slash food leftovers and put the remaining scraps to better use, as well as their role in meeting these goals.
Furthermore, a food waste decrease policy may result in considerable cost savings, better sustainability, and an enhanced reputation among stakeholders, customers, and other eco-oriented participants that may directly and positively impact your venture.
Developing and introducing a food waste policy involves some steps, and carrying out a comprehensive analysis of your momentary waste practices is a great departure point. This step involves tracking down the origins of leftovers, measuring the amount of waste produced, and making sense of the culprits behind it. Such valuable information prepares the ground for setting doable and realizable goals.
Reward Exemplary Practices
Creating an incentive program to show appreciation for employees who get serious about your efforts to cut food waste can be a powerful tactic to encourage them to promote a culture of sustainability. These perks motivate them to take matters into their own hands and prove your business’s dedication to acknowledging and appreciating your staff’s efforts.
Ensure goals are explicitly stated and understood, defining the criteria according to which rewards are received. Ensure your objectives are achievable, measurable, and aligned with your restaurant’s possibilities. Given that only 30% U.S. employees can admit they feel esteemed by their upper management, it’s notable that you’ll want to measure results in order to motivate instead of control.
Lastly, don’t make differences between your employees, for striving to achieve the enterprise’s goals is to be recognized and recompensed. When employees feel deserving and respected, they put in the most effort to be team players and achieve visible results, whether it’s food waste reduction or improved client interactions that you expect.
Change in your restaurant starts with yourself and your staff, so dare to trigger it and you’ll thank yourself down the road as the benefits of cutting leftover waste begin to surface.