What to do about food waste has been a hot topic growing even hotter in recent years. Most efforts have targeted the back end of the food waste problem—who to send it to (local pig farmer?), how to make it smaller or disappear (grinder, bio-digester or local composter maybe?). From what I have seen, not enough has been done in our industry to address the entire “lifecycle” of food waste. That is why I was happy to read this past week that the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), with support from The Rockefeller Foundation, and the American Hotel & Lodging...

SAN FRANCISCO—Most organizations tackle our global food waste problem only after noticing how much food has already been wasted. BlueCart conducted a survey revealing that when restaurants switched from traditional ordering methods to online and mobile ordering via the BlueCart application, they cut their food waste by 52 percent. Since stumbling upon this information, BlueCart has made a commitment to support sustainability practices within the food industry. This commitment launches in the form of The Zero Waste Kitchen initiative, designed to share chefs’ best composting strategies and other sustainable practices, in hopes of enlightening the greater chef community and...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—World Wildlife Fund (WWF), with support from The Rockefeller Foundation, and the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), today launched a series of pilot projects aimed at further reducing food waste in the hotel industry. WWF and AHLA developed the projects in conjunction with a working group from AHLA’s Food & Beverage Committee and Sustainability Committee. Hotel brands participating in the projects include Hilton, Hyatt, IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) and Marriott International, as well as Hershey Entertainment & Resorts, Sage Hospitality and Terranea Resort. The pilots were also developed with the support of The Rockefeller Foundation’s YieldWise Initiative,...

SAMUI, THAILAND—Six Senses Samui has unveiled its latest sustainability initiative, Farm on the Hill, in its quest to be more environmentally conscious and to offer an authentic Thai farm experience to guests. The farm may be small, yet it adds big purpose and value to the resort’s operation while benefitting the local community. The farm’s inception was born from a landscaping necessity, which includes a large volume of organic waste generated (e.g. branch trimmings), unutilized grey water, and lack of nutrient rich soil. All the resort needed was 15 to 20 goats, 80 chickens, one simple greywater catchment system and...

OSHKOSH, WIS.—Continental recently added a 200-pound capacity dryer to its Pro-Series II dryer line. The new 200-pound capacity dryer is the largest of the Pro-Series II line, which also includes models in 20- to 175-pound capacity sizes. The new dryer is equipped with quality components, easy-to-use programmable controls and a multitude of features that dramatically increase laundry production and energy efficiency. Properly balanced airflow, heat input and basket volume allows maximum production when matched with soft-mount E-Series Washers. Providing 200 pounds of drying capacity, and available in steam and natural gas models, the Pro-Series II Dryer quickly and efficiently dries...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Alliance to Save Energy vowed to fight budget cuts for federal energy efficiency programs proposed Thursday by the Trump administration, including the elimination of the successful ENERGY STAR program and sharp reductions at the Department of Energy (DOE). “This is a destructive proposal that walks away from decades of bipartisan support for energy efficiency going back to the Reagan administration and beyond,” said Alliance President Kateri Callahan. “We oppose these cuts in the strongest possible terms and will do everything we can to fight them in Congress.” “This budget ignores the fact that energy efficiency creates jobs and economic growth,” Callahan adds....

This week’s guest blogger is Will Harmon, Marketing Associate at BlueCart. Sustainability is a word that’s tossed around relentlessly, especially now as we transition from winter to spring and we enter the growing season. Sustainable food, sustainable communities, sustainable transportation; almost everything has a sustainable variant these days. That’s fantastic. It wasn’t too long ago that these variants didn’t exist. With viable options for reducing waste, whether it be food scraps or C02, more and more people are able to tap into sustainable resources to streamline their operations for maximum efficiency. One of the cornerstones of the sustainable movement is the...

NEW YORK—Up on the roof of the Conrad New York, a luxury waterfront, all-suite hotel located in the heart of lower Manhattan’s Battery Park City, Executive Chef Gerron Douglas can be found year-round, overseeing a garden that even in the winter produces root vegetables, squash and some herbs. The rooftop garden and green roof have been in place since the LEED Gold certified hotel was renovated six years ago. “There is always something there,” Douglas says. “We adjust based on the season.” In the warmer months the garden produces lettuce, mustard greens and tomatoes. Douglas adds, “We really try...

CHICAGO—The National Restaurant Association announced the recipients of the 2017 Kitchen Innovations (KI) Awards, honoring forward-thinking equipment and technologies that increase efficiencies and productivity for back-of-the-house operations and benefit restaurant operators. Each recipient and their product will be showcased in the interactive Kitchen Innovations Pavilion at the 2017 National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show, held from May 20 to 23 in Chicago at McCormick Place. “The engineers and inventors who develop these KI Award innovations work tirelessly to solve the challenges of back-of-the-house operations, to the great benefit of restaurant operators,” says Atour Eyvazian, Convention Chair for NRA Show 2017 and multiunit owner of...

TROY, OHIO—Featuring cost- and energy-saving innovations combined with advanced cleaning, the new Hobart CLeN converyor line has earned a prestigious Kitchen Innovation (KI) Award from the National Restaurant Association (NRA). The Hobart CLeN Warewasher Energy Recovery is among 18 products selected by the NRA as recipients of the 2017 KI Awards, each designated for the honor because of technologies that increase efficiencies and productivity for back-of-the-house operations. Using industry-leading technology to clean dishes and kitchen ware in less time and at a lower cost of operation, the Hobart CLeN Energy Recovery features Drain Water Energy Recovery (DWER) that provides up...