Refuse Division

Reduce Waste in the Restaurant/Food Service Industry

These ideas originate from many tried and true programs dealing with reducing restaurant operating costs. In many instances, your restaurant may already use one or more of these ideas.

Purchasing:

• Ask that your purveyor’s representatives keep you informed of new and existing products with minimal packaging.
• Ask your purveyor to take back the shipping boxes for reuse or recycling.
• If you serve carbonated beverages from a beverage gun or dispenser (i.e., post-mix), ask for (if space permits) reusable syrup canisters, rather than the bag-in-the-box alternative.
• Buy and use dispenser beverages (e.g., juice, iced tea, hot chocolate) in concentrate or bulk form.
• Similarly, buy milk in the 5-gallon dispenser box, rather than the half-gallon carton.
• Buy bar mixes in concentrate form, reconstitute and portion them into reusable serving containers, rather than using ready-to-use mix.
• Use condiment bottles and refill them from condiments purchased in bulk containers.
• Use health department-approved, refillable condiment dispensers whenever possible (e.g., cream for coffee, ketchup, etc.) instead of individual packets.
• Consider buying pickles, mayonnaise, salad dressings, etc., in containers other than the hard plastic pails and buckets. Almost all are available in other containers, including plastic-lined cardboard, cry-o-vac, or foil pouches. Alternatively, try returning the containers to the manufacturer.
• Consider buying eggs shelled in bulk if your egg usage for general cooking is 3 or more cases per week. Not only will it increase your yield (up to 30% of the egg white stays with the shell when raw eggs are shelled manually), but will eliminate broken eggs in the cooler and having to dispose of the shells and boxes.
• Buy shelf-stable food supplies in bulk or concentrate whenever sales volumes and storage space justify it. This minimizes unnecessary packaging and can cost less on a per unit basis, too.
• Purchase fewer cleaning products. Buy multi-purpose cleaners that can be used for all types of surfaces, rather than buying different cleaners. Consider buying cleaning agents that are either the least toxic or non-toxic in nature.
• Serve straws from health department-approved dispensers, rather than offering them pre-wrapped. At the same time, consider purchasing straws with a smaller hole size or thickness, rather than the ones you are currently using.
• Use reusable coasters (or nothing at all), instead of paper napkins when serving beverages from the bar.
• Use roll-type paper towels in your restrooms and at hand sinks, instead of pre-cut towels. Better yet, consider using hot-air hand dryers or cloth roll dispensers.

Product Handling and Storage:

• Refuse to accept damaged produce. Check your produce deliveries carefully for rotten or damaged products.
• Clean coolers and freezers (reach-ins and walk-ins) regularly. Ensure that food has not fallen behind the shelves and spoiled.
• Watch your storage practices. Store raw vegetables and other perishables in reusable airtight containers to prevent unnecessary dehydration and spoilage. Also store produce (especially leafy vegetables) as far away from the condenser unit as possible to prevent freezing.
• Store and/or handle unwrapped paper supplies (e.g., drink cups, napkins, bags) carefully to prevent the products from inadvertently falling onto the floor.
• Donate unused food to an area food bank.
• Package your waste well. Consider using plastic trash liners made of recycled HDPE (plastics labeled #2), instead of ones made of LDPE or LLDPE. They contain less raw materials, work equally well (or better) for most uses, and generally cost less. Look for recycled bags with post-consumer content.

Food Preparation and Storage:

• Evaluate and adjust the size of your meal portions, if you find they are consistently being returned unfinished.
• Pre-cool steam table hot foods (in an ice bath) before placing them in the cooler. Similarly, always place hot foods into clean, shallow containers before storing in the cooler. This helps prevent premature spoilage and keeps your cooler from working overtime to keep things properly refrigerated.

Production and Service Areas

• Develop and maintain a monthly cleaning and maintenance program for all your equipment.
• Keep refrigeration in good running order to prevent unnecessary spoilage resulting from broken equipment. This also extends the life of the compressors and reduces energy costs as well.
• Check the syrup-to-water (Brix) calibrator on your beverage dispenser at least twice a week. Similarly, clean the heads and dispenser tips on all of your beverage machines daily. This helps ensure consistent beverage production quality and quantity.
• Use a test kit supplied by your grocery distributor (rather than eyeballing it) to determine whether to change your fryer oil.
• Have employees use permanent-ware mugs or cups for their drinks.
• Place rubber mats around bus and dishwashing stations to further reduce china and glass breakage. This also minimizes injury resulting from slippage.
• Distribute condiments and napkins from behind the counter, instead of offering them self-serve. Train your staff to offer a predetermined quantity for each customer.
• Use serving containers in sizes that meet the packaging needs of your menu items, without having excess packaging material.
• Minimize the use of unnecessary extra packaging (e.g., double wrapping, double bagging, etc.) of take-out foods. Establish packaging standards for every menu item and let your staff know that it’s important to follow them. Remember, every extra bag or piece of wrap that they use is money out of your pocket and more garbage in the dumpster.

Ideas excerpted from “Food For Thought: San Francisco Restaurants’ Guide to Waste Reduction and Recycling,” City and County of San Francisco Recycling Program, 1992.