Name: Harith WickremaTitle: Chief Visionary OfficerProperty: Eco Serendib Villa and SpaYears property open: Three Primary responsibilities: “One of my most important responsibilities as chief visionary officer is to ensure the villa stays true to the original concept.”   Organization’s most significant sustainability-related accomplishment: “Educating guests while using resources to give back to the St. John Community.”  Organization’s most significant sustainability-related challenge: “Recycling. On St. John we don’t have recycling. Garbage gets shipped to St. Thomas.”  ST. JOHN, U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS—As Chief Visionary Officer and owner of the eight-suite Eco Serendib Villa and Spa on St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands, Harith...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The National Restaurant Association (NRA) named LeanPath Inc., creators of automated food waste monitoring systems, as a preferred supplier of its Conserve sustainability program. LeanPath provides systems which enable foodservice professionals to dramatically reduce food waste, lower food costs and operate more sustainable facilities.  “As part of our Conserve Program, NRA provides tips and tools for restaurant operators looking to minimize food waste to run a more sustainable operation,” said Jeff Clark, Conserve Program Director. “Preventing food waste has a triple-line bottom impact: environmental, social and financial. As a program collaborator, LeanPath will help us connect operators with...

NATIONAL REPORT—Hotel bars and restaurants operate, at least in terms of energy efficiency, much the same as free-standing commercial restaurant operations. Small energy inefficiencies add up in the same ways that they do in commercial operations. When you create any personal budget, the first thing that you do is look at how much you’re currently spending.  Saving energy in your commercial kitchen begins the same way: know what your energy expenditures are. •    List everything that uses power. •    Make notes about appliances that you use on a constant basis. •    Watch the kitchen’s operation and take notes on the practices and...

NEW YORK—The Waldorf Astoria, New York Hilton Midtown, and Carlton hotels have been honored for their environmentally friendly initiatives as recipients of the first ever Sustainability Awards, presented yesterday by the Hotel Association of New York City (HANYC) at the International Hotel, Motel + Restaurant Show held at the Javits Center.The Hotel Association of NYC’s Sustainability Committee offered awards in three categories: Environmental Protection, awarded to the New York Hilton Midtown for its comprehensive green building efficiency program; Social Responsibility, awarded to the Carlton for its engagement with the community; and Holistic Strategy for Sustainable Hospitality, awarded to the...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Those looking for assurance that a laundry wastewater recycling system does indeed reduce utility costs can find proof in study results recently released by the U.S. Department of Energy (D.O.E.) Building Technologies Office. The D.O.E., with the assistance of outside consultants, conducted a demonstration project to evaluate laundry wastewater recycling technology in the hospitality sector. The D.O.E. report, entitled, “Demonstration of Advanced Technologies for Multi-Load Washers in Hospitality and Healthcare—Wastewater Recycling Technology,” documents the demonstration of a wastewater recycling system installed at the Grand Hyatt Seattle.The Grand Hyatt, a four diamond hotel located in downtown Seattle, has 425...

NEW YORK—The American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) New York Metro’s Chapter honored GROHE, a leading manufacturer of premium kitchen and bath fixtures, in its first annual design awards. Announced last month, the awards recognize outstanding design, creativity, commitment and service within the industry. GROHE was honored with three awards: the Sustainability Award, Industry Partner Award and the Creative Invention Award for GROHE Blue Chilled & Sparkling.“We’re honored to be recognized by ASID,” said Cheryl Dixon, Head of Brand and Trade Marketing for GROHE America. “Receiving recognition from esteemed interior designers and the New York design community is especially...

FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA.—Agaia, Inc., makers of Evolve, an eco-preferred, natural green cleaning technology capable of matching or exceeding the performance of petroleum-based laundry detergents and jan-san cleaners, announced that the company’s premier industrial laundry detergent, Evolve Laundry Complete 203L, has been certified by Green Seal as the first detergent to meet its recently published GS-51 guidelines for Laundry Care Products for Industrial & Institutional Use.“We are proud to announce that Evolve Laundry 203L has been awarded the first GS-51 certification by Green Seal for Laundry Care Products for Industrial & Institutional Use,” said Mike Linn, Agaia, Inc. CEO. “Many...

OSHKOSH, WIS.—Following 60 years of hard-mount washer development and innovation, Continental Girbau Inc. recently released its most advanced hard-mount washer line yet. The new G-Flex Washer-Extractors generate extract speeds of up to 200 G-force, offer a highly programmable control, and deliver results using less water and energy. Available in 40- and 55-pound capacitites, G-Flex Washers also deliver the flexibility of six programmable extract speeds, including 100, 140 and 200 G-force. G-Flex Washers offer high-speed extract for bolstered productivity.As extract speeds increase, according to Joel Jorgensen, Continental Vice President of Sales and Customer Services, so does the amount of moisture...

CINCINNATI—P&G Professional, the away-from-home division of Procter & Gamble, announced the launch of the Tide Professional Coldwater System, an on-premise laundry program that enables facilities to save as much as $8,700 per year based on water, energy and linen replacement cost savings.The new Tide Professional Coldwater System includes four products—a near-neutral pH detergent, fabric softener, bleach and whiteness enhancer—that are formulated to work together to deliver clean, soft linens and towels to guests while using significantly less water at colder temperatures than traditional on-premise laundry systems. The advanced formula in the Tide Professional Coldwater System also uses unique enzymes...

STOCKBRIDGE, MASS.—On Sunday, August 31, the Outstanding in the Field bus arrived in the Berkshires for a third year on the hills of Lila’s Farm in Great Barrington, Mass. Executive Chef Brian Alberg and his crew from The Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge manned the field kitchen and the celebrated long table presenting a five-course meal to 175 guests, one of the biggest dinners of Outstanding in the Field’s (OITF) season. This is the third year Brian Alberg was the selected chef for the Berkshire OITF dinner.Ingredients for each OITF meal are almost all local, sometimes sourced within inches...