It is crucial for restaurants today to focus on smart management of food waste. Food is the second most expensive thing on the list of restaurant budgets after personnel expenses. This is the reason why owners of restaurants need to incorporate food waste management techniques into their business plans. In this article, we will discuss the importance of food waste management consultant and the techniques that can be used to eliminate such waste products.
Hotels are the second largest commercial refrigeration system in the world. However, despite the numerous features, there are no common practices applied by the hotels to manage food waste. It can be attributed to a lack of awareness and sensitivity of the customers and lack of involvement of the hotel staff. Therefore, it is important that the hotel staff is well aware of the consequences of improper handling of food waste. If they do not follow the rules and guidelines, customers will not get motivated to follow them and ultimately the business suffers.
Hotels and restaurants lose a lot of money even during the elimination of waste. In order to reduce the amount of money being spent and also reduce the amount of food going to waste, certain procedures are to be followed.
The first step is to create a responsible team that consists of owners, general managers, and sous chefs. This team should be experts in food waste management. They should conduct a food waste audit to find out the amount of food waste and organize and find efficient ways to reduce food waste in the restaurant. They can also arrange for the recycling of leftover food waste from other restaurants. You can research and understand how to conduct a food waste audit, organized and evaluate inventory, and find efficient ways to reduce food waste in a restaurant. Proper food storage is also necessary. Once the inventory has been considered, the food should be stored properly to retain the quality of the product. Remember, the best food is the food that has not sat stagnant for long. Your food waste needs to be managed at the right place and right time. The last thing you want is for it to go out without your knowledge. A Responsible Team, for example, is made of people such as your Front Office Manager and Front of House staff members who know your menu inside out and how to serve it. They ensure that you get the right kind of food on time. This reduces waste since it’s easier to reuse ingredients and ingredients that are not edible by you. Having a dedicated team will also ensure a strong sense of accountability to maintain your food and zero-waste policy. Evaluation of inventory and waste segregation management also starts from here.
You can also use a company that offers professional food waste management services. It’s best to use one that has experience in all kinds of waste management. Identify the areas where your restaurant wastes most food, assess the amount of wastage, and what is the problem in doing so. In case there is a lack of control over the amount of wastage, an audit can be conducted by following some guidelines:
Sorting: Start from the bottom. The lowest-volume areas for food waste are in front of the house. Food in the topmost parts of the kitchen should be sorted right from the beginning. Eliminate scrap and rotting food. The kitchen is the biggest source of food waste in restaurants. Sorting the food you sell is the most effective way to cut down on food waste. Sorting and organising the kind of ingredients and food products your restaurant uses is an extremely important step in the waste management and waste reduction process.
Keeping an inventory and updating it is the next step to reducing waste. If you know what has been purchased when, used when, how much is left and what the shelf life of a product is, it becomes easier to use the ingredients in a right and timely manner which in turn would reduce unnecessary waste. The front end of the hall can also present insights on the ingredients or elements of a dish that are usually wasted or left untouched on a plate, this way that specific element can be eliminated from the dish.
Many items can also be recycled like the restaurant can set up a compost area where food waste can be turned into compost for the plants or garden in the area. Unspoiled stuff can be donated and shared with different organisations.
Now, we have come up with the right tips for preventing and curtailing food waste in restaurants. The tips can be included in a responsible waste management plan and a value system for all restaurants.