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Top Strategies for Reducing Food Waste in Your Restaurant Chain

Top Strategies for Reducing Food Waste in Your Restaurant Chain

There’s no doubt that food waste is a pressing issue within the food service industry with consequences that are far-reaching for us all. Globally, it’s estimated that food waste from restaurant and hospitality management accounts for a significant portion of the billions of tons discarded each year. One study by FoodPrint.org estimates that the average restaurant throws away 22 to 33 billion pounds of food each year in the US alone! All of this waste contributes to environmental degradation, resource waste, and potent greenhouse gas emissions around the world.

  1. Conducting a Waste Audit 
  2. Optimizing Your Inventory to Reduce Waste 
  3. Designing a Zero-Waste Menu 
  4. Training Employees in Waste Reduction Practices 
  5. Implementing Portion Control 
  6. Partnering with Local Food Donation Programs 
  7. Leveraging Technology to Monitor and Reduce Waste 
  8. Measuring Success with Waste Metrics 
  9. Supy’s Role in Minimizing Restaurant Food Waste 
  10. Conclusion 
  11. About Supy 

Due to their large scale, many multi-location restaurant chains are uniquely positioned to tackle the issue of food waste. By implementing strategic measures, they can not only reduce their environmental impact but also achieve cost savings and bolster their corporate responsibility initiatives. 

In this blog, we’ll explore actionable strategies for reducing food waste in your multi location restaurant chain. We’ll examine the efficiency of existing corporate initiatives and understand the role of staff training, portion control, composting, and creative food repurposing techniques in the pursuit of our quest. Read on to learn more!



1. Conducting a Waste Audit

Conducting a Waste Audit

A waste audit is a critical step in identifying where and why food waste occurs in your restaurant chain. Once you’ve got this covered, you can understand the root causes of the problem and implement targeted strategies for reduction.

To conduct an effective waste audit, you’ll need to follow a structured approach. Start by defining your objectives—whether reducing food waste, lowering costs, or enhancing your restaurant’s sustainability. Next, collect data over a specific period, tracking food waste by type (e.g., spoilage, plate waste, overproduction) and source (kitchen, storage, or dining room).

The next step is to categorize and analyze your data. For example, if you notice that a large amount of produce is being discarded due to spoilage, it could be a sign of improper storage or over-ordering. This analysis will help pinpoint areas needing improvement, such as adjusting portion sizes or enhancing staff training on food handling.

It’s a good idea to use tools and software to streamline this process. For instance, inventory management systems can help track food usage patterns, ensuring that your purchasing aligns with actual consumption. 






2. Optimizing Your Inventory to Reduce Waste

Optimizing Your Inventory to Reduce Waste

Optimizing how you manage your inventory is a crucial step towards food waste prevention in restaurants, as effective inventory practices help prevent overordering and spoilage. By maintaining accurate inventory levels, restaurants ensure they only purchase the necessary amount of ingredients, reducing both waste and unnecessary costs

One essential technique is using the first-in, first-out (FIFO) system, which ensures that older stock is used before your newer supplies, thus minimizing the risk of spoilage.

Leveraging inventory management technology is also a great way to enhance these efforts. Automation tools and predictive analytics help forecast demand with greater accuracy, ensuring that restaurants order just the right amount of ingredients. These technologies also track expiration dates and provide real-time data on stock usage, further reducing the chances of overstocking and waste.

For restaurant chains with multiple locations, real-time tracking across sites can improve efficiency and waste reduction. Using centralized systems that integrate inventory data from all locations allows you to monitor each site’s stock consistently. This approach enables managers to make data-driven decisions and adjust ordering practices quickly, optimizing inventory across the entire chain. 




3. Designing a Zero-Waste Menu

According to the National Restaurant Association, refining your menu is a crucial strategy for minimizing food waste. You can do this by making sure ingredients in your menu are cross-utilized among multiple menu items. This simplifies your inventory and makes sure you’re using all your ingredients, even if there are fluctuations in demand. You could do this by creating dishes that feature common base ingredients like vegetables or meats, for instance, thus minimizing waste by incorporating them into various meals.

Another key strategy is to focus on seasonal dishes. Incorporating local and seasonal ingredients into the menu can help reduce waste by aligning food purchases with whatever’s available in season, reducing the risk of over-ordering perishable items. It’s also good practice to analyze how your menu performs on a regular basis so you can identify which dishes produce the most waste and remove underperforming items.




4. Training Employees in Waste Reduction Practices

The National Restaurant Association’s 86 Food Waste Report highlights the importance of staff training in waste reduction practices. By creating an environment of responsibility and engagement, restaurants can significantly reduce the amount of waste produced across their operations.

The first step is to have your restaurant manager engage employees in the process from the very beginning. Incorporating waste reduction into your onboarding and daily training helps hammer in its importance for employees. Staff should be made aware of the environmental and financial consequences of food waste and trained on practical waste-prevention techniques, such as proper ways to store food, smart inventory management, and the effective use of leftover scraps.

Another important strategy is to designate food waste champions within the restaurant. These individuals can lead by example, promoting sustainable practices among colleagues, and help track progress. Regular communication is essential to keeping wasted food at the top of your employees’ minds. Additionally, restaurants can conduct food waste audits and share the results with staff to identify areas for improvement. Empowering employees to suggest solutions is key to creating a sense of ownership and accountability.

Finally, involving staff in decision-making—such as revising portion sizes or adjusting prep techniques—can lead to valuable insights. For instance, minor changes like adjusting how vegetables are trimmed or portioned can lead to significant reductions in waste over time. By offering incentives for waste reduction milestones, restaurants can further motivate employees to stay committed to sustainable practices.




5. Implementing Portion Control

Another key strategy for reducing food waste in a restaurant chain is implementing portion control. By analyzing data on customer preferences and sales trends, restaurants can determine the ideal portion sizes for different items on their menu

Using tools like portion scales and pre-measured servings can help you standardize your portions across multiple locations. This reduces inconsistencies in serving sizes, leading to a more predictable level of waste. For instance, a restaurant can use scales to measure ingredients like meat or vegetables, ensuring that the amount used aligns with the standardized recipe.




6. Partnering with Local Food Donation Programs

Partnering with food donation programs can be a powerful strategy for reducing food waste in restaurant chains while giving back to the community. By collaborating with local food banks, charities, and nonprofit organizations, restaurants can redirect surplus food to those in need, helping to address food insecurity.

Several large restaurant chains have successfully implemented food donation initiatives. For example, McDonald’s has leveraged its vast supply chain to donate millions of pounds of food globally, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. They partnered with organizations such as Feeding America and the Global FoodBanking Network to distribute surplus food from their restaurants to food banks and community groups. This effort not only helped reduce waste but also supported vulnerable populations facing heightened food insecurity during the crisis.

Similarly, Panera Bread’s Day-End Dough-Nation program donates unsold bakery items to local homeless shelters and food pantries. Through this initiative, Panera has donated nearly $100 million worth of food, demonstrating the impact that even smaller food donations can have on reducing waste.

However, while partnering with food donation programs offers clear benefits, restaurants must address logistical challenges such as food safety, storage, and transportation to ensure that donations are handled appropriately. Some liability concerns also arise, but many restaurants are protected by the Good Samaritan Food Donation Act, which shields them from liability when donating food in good faith.




7. Leveraging Technology to Monitor and Reduce Waste

The integration of technology, particularly IoT devices, sensors, and food monitoring systems, plays a pivotal role in reducing food waste within restaurant chains. By enabling real-time tracking, these technologies provide valuable insights into operational inefficiencies that contribute to waste. For example, IoT-enabled sensors are commonly used to monitor critical environmental conditions, such as temperature and humidity, in cold storage units. This ensures food is kept within optimal conditions, preventing spoilage and reducing unnecessary waste.

Furthermore, predictive waste management tools leverage machine learning and AI to forecast food demand more accurately. This allows restaurants to optimize inventory, ensuring they purchase only what is necessary and preventing overstocking, which leads to wasted produce. For instance, you could use AI to track food demand patterns, improving the management of fresh departments and cutting down on food waste. Similarly, systems that monitor food freshness through IoT-connected packaging or sensors in bins can provide actionable data on the type and quantity of food being discarded, enabling businesses to adjust their purchasing and preparation practices accordingly.




8. Measuring Success with Waste Metrics

Measuring Success with Waste Metrics

To quantify the success of their food waste reduction systems, many restaurant managers rely on tracking specific Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). These metrics allow restaurants to evaluate their waste reduction efforts, refine strategies, and achieve more sustainable operations.

Key KPIs for food waste management include:

Waste Diversion Rates: This measures the percentage of waste diverted from landfills through recycling or composting. A high diversion rate indicates that waste is being effectively reduced and repurposed.

Cost Savings from Waste Reduction: By tracking reductions in waste-related expenses, restaurants can see how waste management strategies contribute to their bottom line. This might include savings on disposal fees and the food and labor costs of unused food.

Waste Generation Per Unit of Production: This KPI tracks how much food waste is produced relative to food prepared, helping to pinpoint inefficiencies in production and portion sizes.

Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT): While indirect, tracking customer satisfaction with food quality and waste practices can provide valuable feedback. Customers appreciate sustainability efforts, and a higher CSAT score can signal the successful implementation of waste-reduction practices.

To achieve meaningful results, it is important to have regularly scheduled evaluations in place that employ these key metrics. Comparing your results to standard industry benchmarks can help you identify areas for improvement. 




9. Supy’s Role in Minimizing Restaurant Food Waste

Supy offers several comprehensive services designed to help you in your journey to restaurant management. Our expertise in the restaurant industry means we understand the unique challenges you face and can provide tailored solutions to meet your needs. 

Here’s how Supy is designed to help:

Identify and Address Sources of High-Waste: It can be difficult to identify where our wastage comes from during restaurant operations. Are there too many expiring items? Or are ingredients getting lost during the preparation process? With solid stats at hand, Supy makes it easier to train your team and create profitable items for your menu.

Real-Time Reporting & Forecast Analytics: Supy’s forecasting tools are designed to use historical data to predict future needs, helping you to plan your operations better and order ingredients more accurately. By analyzing past sales and consumption patterns, these tools can estimate how much of each ingredient will be required for a given period. This foresight allows you to adjust orders pre-emptively, reducing the likelihood of surplus stock that could become waste.

Unlock Profitable Restaurant Procurement: Track the value of your purchases across your suppliers and restaurant locations. Coordinating with your suppliers through the latest restaurant technology is an excellent way to streamline your supply chain and prevent overstocking. This ensures sustainable practices like avoiding spoilage and excess inventory that can lead to wastage.

Centralized Data Storage: Instead of having multiple servers installed at every business location, why not store your data remotely on the cloud for a more convenient business experience? With all your relevant data backed up on the cloud, restaurant owners and managers can proactively manage their waste, optimize their restaurant operations, and expand their sales channels with confidence.






10. Conclusion

In conclusion, working towards minimizing food waste in your restaurant chain is both a smart financial decision and a vital step towards accepting greater environmental responsibility. Throughout this article, we explored several key strategies, including streamlining inventory management, adopting portion control techniques, and implementing sustainable sourcing practices to minimize food waste.

It’s important to remember that by reducing waste, your restaurant not only saves money by cutting down on wasted ingredients and overheads but also contributes to environmental sustainability. Food waste is a significant issue, and restaurants are in a prime position to take the lead in minimizing it. This aligns with growing consumer expectations for sustainable practices, which can enhance your brand reputation and attract environmentally-conscious diners.

To maximize the impact of these strategies, why not use restaurant management solutions like Supy to help you track, manage, and reduce food waste effectively? Subscribe to our newsletter or schedule a free demo today to learn more about how you can keep your food waste levels at an all time low. You can also click here to learn more about other retail task management software.




11. About Supy

Supy is the best restaurant inventory management software platform tailored for multi-branch restaurants and franchises. With features like real-time inventory tracking, smart procurement systems, and advanced analytics, Supy helps restaurants manage their various demands effectively and provides the tools restaurants need to thrive in a dynamic industry.  

For the latest expert insights, download Supy’s ebook: The Ultimate Guide to Reducing Food Costs in Multi-Branch & Enterprise Restaurants.

Ready to find out more? Schedule a demo with Supy today and take the first step towards a streamlined, profitable future.

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