Top 10 Sustainability Tips for Hospitality Managers

You don’t need to be told that sustainable consumption is a rising trend across almost every sector and industry. From investing to retail, fashion to travel and construction to manufacturing, sustainability is highly marketable and very much in line with ambitious government targets to cut carbon, mainstream media coverage of climate change and bans on wasteful products such as single use plastics.

Hospitality bears no exception. In October 2020, Big Hospitality published insight obtained from a Sustainable Restaurant Association poll, stating that “the number of consumers concerned about the environment has risen from 47% pre-lockdown to 65%, with almost two thirds of these concerned consumers saying they would be likely or very likely to try a restaurants most sustainable dish over their regular favourite.” 

Whether you run a large hotel; a cosy, local pub or a chain restaurant, you are competing for a younger and younger clientele with a growing aversion to unsustainably-sourced food and wasteful packaging. 

Historically, the UK’s hospitality industry has been a large culprit in its overall waste output, in terms of food, energy and material waste. In 2018, the industry was estimated to produce approximately two million tonnes of waste per year. Perhaps even more alarmingly, the Global Hotel Decarbonisation Report states that “hotels need to reduce their absolute carbon emissions by 66% by 2030 and by 90% by 2050, to ensure that the predicted growth of the industry does not lead to a corresponding increase in carbon emissions.” A 90% reduction, albeit over 29 years, requires some major changes in business management, training, purchasing and staff practices, with no business exempt. 

With that in mind, we’ve created a list of top 10 sustainability tips for hospitality managers. The list will cover everything from food waste, to employee incentives, to menu design and room utilities. We will provide you with straightforward steps which any business can implement, reduce waste, build a sustainable brand and retain customers, whilst actually saving money in most instances too.

1. Find your optimum portion size

Food waste is one of the largest waste issues in restaurants, cafes and pubs. The Morning Advisor published that UK restaurants waste around 3.6 million tonnes of food waste per year, incurring an overall cost of £682 million. Whilst chefs and restaurant managers understandably want their customers to go home satisfied by their meal, we must be reminded that nobody will get to appreciate food that ends up in the bin. 

When developing your menu and deciding on portion sizes, trial on the smaller side. Openly ask customers for their opinions and review how much food is being leftover from particular dishes. Create an open channel for communication between kitchen, management and waiting staff to ensure that your plate sizes are not missing the mark. Put indicators of size next to items on your menu. Not only will you save on food waste (alongside its carbon footprint) but you can save money without sacrificing customer satisfaction, and leverage your anti-food waste measures as part of your marketing strategy to ensure customers know that you are doing your bit for the planet.

2. Resourceful menu design

Menu design is integral in reducing food waste in the kitchen. Ensure that your specials make use of perishable stock and leftover ingredients so that you can have the minimal amount of food in your kitchen at any given time. For example, if you know that you will have leftover croissants from a hotel breakfast buffet, you could schedule your dessert menu on the following day to include a break and butter pudding made out of the pastries. If you notice that you have a surplus of root vegetables, add a vegetable soup as an extra weekly special. Be adaptable, strategic and observant, planning each option around the others and saving money in the process.

3. Store food wisely

Managing your stock effectively will help the planet in a number of ways. Firstly, by keeping track of when your items are set to expire and restocking shelves from the back, you will reduce your food waste. However, you can also save energy, for example, by ensuring that you do not store food such as eggs and many vegetables which can be kept at ambient temperatures in the fridge. If you do this effectively, you will end up with less refrigeration space to power and a smaller energy bill in the long term. 

4. Cook to order 

If you know your kitchen will be busy, it’s understandable to want to prepare as much as possible. However, cooking too much in advance is a surefire way to end up throwing away more food. Not only that, but it also requires more fridge and freezer space. By cooking to order, you will reduce both costs and your carbon footprint.

5. Order local, seasonal produce

One of the most important sustainable practices any food business can implement is ordering locally and sustainably sourced ingredients. According to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, “transporting food within, to and around the UK produces 19 million tonnes of CO2 annually – equivalent to around 5.5 million typical cars.” Furthermore, HSBC estimates that over 80% of Britain’s food is imported, once calculations factor in food that is packaged within the UK, but uses ingredients from abroad. 

Discuss your sustainability criteria with kitchen managers to make sure all staff are able to communicate these requirements with suppliers. Ask suppliers about their production process, measuring the environmental impacts and creating a written agreement about your own standards for stock ordered. Ask about ‘wonky’ veg and other good produce which may be being wasted; you may be able to strike up a deal which benefits both you and your supplier.

You can then advertise your menu based on an understanding of it’s environmental credentials throughout each stage of the production, distribution and preparation processes. Ordering seasonal and local ingredients will help you to cut your business’s overall carbon footprint, alongside supporting other local businesses.

6. Incentivise waste reduction

A great way to get customers and staff on-board with your sustainability agenda is to reward them. For example, you can reduce your use of paper, plastic and non-recyclables such as polystyrene and styrofoam cups by rewarding customers with a small discount for bringing their own flask or bottle. You could even sell your own, branded containers as a source of extra revenue whilst encouraging customers to reuse materials. Cycle To Work schemes also offer employees with a great incentive to reduce their carbon footprint, alongside adding to your business’s employee benefit package. Other rewards you can implement include a free treat, loyalty card points or small discount for customers who do not leave any food to waste.

7. Cut single use plastic

Reducing plastic waste is essential to managing a sustainable business. Begin by reviewing how much single-use plastic you are using. Can you replace carrier bags for leftovers with paper bags? Can you replace plastic containers with cardboard boxes? Are you using disposable plastic cutlery where you could be using wooden cutlery? 

Whether you are a restaurant, hotel, cafe or pub, if you notice that a particular supplier is using more plastic than necessary, notify them of your concerns and ask them to shift their approach. As a wholesale consumer, you have the power to speak up and collectively change other companies’ bad habits. If you offer accommodation, ensure you are minimising single-use plastic by replacing disposable, miniature shower gels with paper-wrapped soaps, or a reward scheme for customers who recycle their containers. Use sustainably sourced bedding and wooden toothbrushes wherever possible. Although some of these items may cost more than their less sustainable alternative, you can view these products as an investment which help to build your brand as a sustainable business and future-proof the company as more sustainable practices are mandated in years to come.

8. Practice energy conservation

In many kitchens, it’s common practice to turn on all of the appliances as soon as the kitchen opens each morning, sometimes many hours before orders are even being prepared. Build good habits in your business. Create an opening and closing checklist which involves conserving energy and keeping appliances off as much as possible. A clearly outlined routine, with visual reminders dotted around your place of work, will help employees to build new habits that then become second nature. 

Clever menu design can also help you to save energy. Consider the energy used to prepare different dishes and factor this into your scheduling, making use of all available oven space when you use ovens for roasting, for example.

9. Educate and Train Staff

Closely linked to your business’s energy conservation is it’s training and staff management programme. At the end of the day, your staff will be the ones implementing your waste saving measures, so it’s important to ensure they are on-side and aware of the benefits. Tell your staff about your sustainability goals and the difference your business will make within the wider world. Whilst training staff, explain why particular energy saving techniques are important and regularly ask for their suggestions/feedback. You are almost certain to gain even more ideas, as well as a better response, by communicating openly with your workforce. 

10. Make use of innovative technologies

There is a growing market of technologies specifically aimed at reducing energy, food, water and other waste produced by the hospitality industry. Some examples include water saving devices which can be easily fitted inside urinals, limiting the amount of water used throughout the day. Sensors and smart tracking software can be used to turn off lights and ventilators in hotel rooms whilst guests are away, with some systems even able to turn these facilities back whilst guests are traveling back to their room, ensuring the room is at an optimum temperature for their arrival. 

GridDuck is also designed to help you reduce your bills, by monitoring and automating energy usage. We use smart clamps, relays and hubs alongside an easy-to-use dashboard which allows you to stay up to date using any device. 

To learn more about how GridDuck can help your business to save, schedule a quick and informal chat with Miles today.