Menu tips to reduce food waste

Transcription

1 Menu tips to reduce food waste - Guide No.9 - in a series of 10 for you to collect and keep WASTE NOT WANT NOT Bite sized guide to help hospitality businesses to find innovative ways to reduce waste

2 1. Use seasonal and locally sourced ingredients Seasonal and local ingredients can be less expensive and more sustainable - requiring less packaging and lower transportation/ fuel costs. Promote your locally-sourced seasonal dishes with a monthly menu insert. Offering something new for a limited period will create fresh interest and excite customers to return. 62% Over 62% of customers said that the use of ecolabels, for example MSC, raised their confidence and trust in a brand (GlobeScan). 2. Offer daily specials Maximise use of prepared food in daily specials e.g. soups and curries. Creating a flexible menu can prevent good food from being thrown away and refresh your menu. 3. Get creative Almost everything we throw away can be turned into something else. Consider how perishable ingredients or trimmings can be used in different ways, e.g. bones for stock, or bread for breadcrumbs or croutons. 4. Use fresh ingredients in more than one dish If you use fresh ingredients with a short shelf life, make sure you can re-use these in more than one recipe to ensure they are used before there is any spoilage, e.g. fresh, cut herbs or delicate salad leaves. Food is more versatile before it is cooked, so batch cook only the number of portions you need.

3 MENU 5. Reduce the number of dishes on the menu Too much choice on a menu can actually put customers off. Customers are increasingly looking for fresh and locally sourced food so focus on the quality rather than quantity of dishes. Reducing your menu will appeal to customers, reduce your ingredient list and cut potential waste. Tried and tested Two displays of jam were set up at a gourmet food store for customers to try samples, and customers were given a money-off coupon if they bought a jar. In one display there were six jams, in the other 24. Over 30% of people exposed to the smaller selection bought a jam, but only 3% of those exposed to the larger selection did. Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz 6. Remember frozen foods when planning Frozen ingredients, such as vegetables or fish, are great for portion control and can be frozen within hours of purchase and often much fresher than other ingredients. Equally, surplus food and unused fresh stock can be frozen to use at a later date. 7. Offer different portion sizes and side dishes Tap into current consumer trends, for example offering a choice of smaller dishes or different sized main courses. Customers will be able to order to fit appetite, avoiding plate waste. Click here to get involved with the Love Food Hate Waste campaign. 8. Watch the weather and local events Keep an eye on the weather forecast and nearby events when ordering to help predict your customer behaviour over the next few days! They could affect your menu decisions so it pays to stock up accordingly, especially for fresh produce. If there s enough menu flexibility daily specials can also be tailored.

4 Menu design MENU Your menu is one of your most important strategic marketing tools. Good design shows dedication and professionalism and can positively impact your restaurant s bottom line. Storytelling sells, so with growing consumer awareness of food waste try and highlight where you ve been sustainable as part of your brand story. Make sure that the look and feel of your menu is in harmony with the overall design of your restaurant. If seasonal, local or sustainably sourced ingredients are used emphasise them with a symbol. Highlight healthy, sustainable and bestselling dishes with boxes, colours and photos to draw attention; items with higher sales volumes should produce less waste through over-ordering. Place the most profitable and least wasteful dishes in first and last position on the menu. Customers are more likely to remember these. The bottom right-hand quadrant of the menu is where the customer will look last so is the best place for lower margin dishes. For these slower selling items, you ll be able to reduce purchasing and avoid wasting ingredients.

5 Practical advice and expert know-how for the hospitality industry created through collaboration between Winnow, SWR and the BHA: The BHA aims to be the single most powerful voice actively championing the interests of the whole industry and its business partnership scheme enables the best suppliers and partners to the industry to participate in developing insight and sharing best practice. SWR offers a comprehensive, integrated waste management service, helping companies control costs and improve their recycling and sustainable environmental performance. Winnow is the revolutionary smart meter that helps kitchens cut food waste in half by automatically measuring what s put in the bin. #wastenotwantnot Get in touch with us - we d love to hear from you! policy@bha.org.uk