How & Why Restaurants Should Focus On Sustainability Efforts

Julie Starr • Jun 26, 2021



Restaurants are fairly unique businesses in terms of how they operate, what kind of experience they provide, and their cultural impact. There isn’t a city or notable town in the world that doesn’t have a form of a restaurant in it, but despite how prevalent and universal they seem, they are truly highly developed and individualistic entities – or at least, the good ones are.

For this reason, restaurants can often lead the charge in terms of culture and what may be ‘in’ right now. This is why Michelin stars are awarded not only on how excellent food is and how fresh it might be, but how in-season it is, if it’s relevant to today, and how forward-thinking the entire pursuit is.

In this light, restaurants are the best place for focusing on sustainability efforts and bringing that more into the mainstream, or at the very least, they are a large part of that picture. But what could they get out of this, and how could they achieve that ideal in the first place? In this post, we hope to discuss that and more:

Recycling Oil

Cooking oil is used for a wide variety of reasons, from using peanut or canola oil for deep fat fryers to keeping griddles well-curated for the cooking of meats, it’s true that many restaurants have quite a large oil quotient as alternatives and large scale air frying installations aren’t altogether that feasible as of the moment.

Thankfully, more and more businesses are opening up that can use this recycled oil for a wide array of healthy pursuits, such as contributing to sustainable biofuel efforts. If your restaurant operates in an urbanized area, odds are you will have access to a program like this. Removing and storing the oil in containers and making sure you manage these logistics well enough does take time, but it can be a fantastic alternative to help achieve better sustainability efforts. And, of course, as a form of recompense, these efforts can be truthfully listed in your promotional material.

Cleaning

Using eco-friendly and non-toxic cleaning materials can help your restaurant remain as hygienic as possible without having to contribute to supporting unsustainable products. You may also find that using excellent restaurant hood cleaning services can help you ensure your ventilation and grease buildup are properly dealt with, thus increasing the cleanliness and utility of your daily operations. In this case, regular hood cleaning can actually thoroughly lessen the risk of a fire, too, as grease is flammable and is a real sticking point for unclean restaurants. That in itself is worth the investment.

Sustainable Ingredients

Of course, sustainable ingredients are also very important to consider. Odds are, a range of excellent farms, grocers and butchers are committed to sustainable ingredients in your local area. For instance, high-end restaurants are turning to more sustainable practices by supporting sturgeon farms that are sustainable, ethical, and still retain access to the best of the best caviar.

Opting for fish that aren’t overfished or come from sustainable fishing sources can help you retain your ethical procurement over time. Choosing in-season vegetables, organic and free-range meat humanely procured, and ensuring that all of these stocks can be replaced will help you ensure that in the end, your restaurant is a champion of these processes.

Food Fairs & Education

It can be healthy to educate the town around you. Of course, that doesn’t mean you have to ignore the priority of running your business and appealing to your guests. That said, there may be a way to combine both of those intentions.

For instance, it could be that you decide to run a food fair or festival geared towards showing off local produce and what it can do. This might help you strike a deal with a local sustainable farm that helps you sell products wholesale through your enterprise while also ensuring guests can sample the best dishes with those ingredients in tow.

For some, this might involve showcasing sustainable and organic cheeses in the local environment, or a vegan festival showcasing environmentally-friendly alternatives to certain foods. The more you can introduce these concepts, dishes and products to people in a friendly, healthy manner, the more that you apply this as a new norm, and the more receptive people are to going out of their comfort zone. That can be a tremendous achievement in the life of your business.

Reduce Food Waste

As a head chef, curating a menu that people enjoy can be tough, but making sure that you reduce food waste can be tougher. Yet if you plan for this, and use that food wastage to help inspire specials of the days or meals that can be used to help shift product, then you don’t have to throw out certain goods.

It could also be worth considering donating to food banks if you have certain items that are unlikely to sell but are close to their expiry date, especially tinned and packaged products that haven’t been tampered with. Ultimately, however, great stock rotation and avoiding the tendency to over-order can help you avoid throwing out items. Regularly training your staff to make sure they limit their own food waste (such as by avoiding simple mistakes) can also help in the long run.

Commit To Learning

Restaurants are made and supported by how relevant and present they are . For this reason, they must always focus on what their next step is, and how they can appeal to people this year. It’s amazing just how much awareness surrounding the importance of sustainability has improved the zeitgeist in recent years, and so innovations are escalating at a rate hitherto unseen. For that reason, restaurant owners and chefs should focus on learning all they can, no matter if that’s by following this website or making sure they keep on top of the news cycle or local food guides. This way, you can always commit to the best practices going forward.

With this advice, we’re sure you’ll focus on sustainability efforts in the best possible manner.

Keep Your Business Comfortable And Yet Sustainable

By Julie Starr • 11 May, 2024
Keeping your business comfortable and yet sustainable is a great idea. By keeping your business sustainable, you are doing your part for the planet, ensuring that you are doing something to take care of it. A lot of businesses don’t bother with this, but that’s the problem. You need to be different, and work out how you’re going to keep your business comfortable and sustainable at the same time. That’s what we’re going to be working on today, so keep reading if you’re interested in learning more. How Are You Powering Your Locations? The first thing that we’re going to say is that you need to think about how you are powering your locations. Whether it’s a business office, a warehouse, or any other large space, you need to think about the way that you are powering it. If you are using traditional electricity then you’re going to be contributing to part of the problem. We only have so much fossil fuel available, and it’s killing the planet to use. It’s a better idea to use a renewable form of power such as solar or wind, depending on where you live and the weather conditions. Look into this as an option if you can. We’re not saying that you have to completely rely on one or the other, you could use a combination as well as traditional power. Any power that’s coming from somewhere else is a bonus! Keep The Spaces Comfortable For Employees Employees work in a variety of places for your business. Again, perhaps some work in an office, some work in a warehouse, and some work in other locations, but they all need to be kept comfortable. For example, if we take the warehouse and you think about it, it’s not that comfortable, right? You’re not going to have couches and plush chairs all over the place, but you can still make it as comfortable as possible. You could use an industrial drum fan or something similar to keep the space cool, ensuring that your employees are content working there. Ensure Recycling Is A Top Priority The final important point that we want to make is that you should ensure that recycling is a top priority . It has been pushed on people for a long time now, and it’s essential that you are doing this to the best of your ability. Reusing materials wherever possible gives your company a more sustainable approach to business, setting the example for others. Recycling is the very least that you can do, it’s not hard, but it makes a world of difference to the planet. We hope that you have found this article helpful, and now see some of the things that you should be doing to ensure that your business is comfortable and sustainable. We do understand that for some companies this is going to be a little more difficult than others, but there are always ways if you are dedicated enough. We wish you the very best of luck, and hope that you manage going forward.

Is Your Small Business an Appealing Place to Work?

By Julie Starr • 07 May, 2024
Bringing passionate, enthusiastic and talented people into your business is obviously a top priority when you’re growing a company. However, the only way to onboard the brightest talent is by ensuring that your brand is an appealing place to work. Driven employees have certain expectations when it comes to choosing their ideal workplace, so you need to show them what you have to offer. Whether you’re looking into your business ethos , or reassessing certain compensation plans, you can do so much to ensure you’re attracting the best possible employees. Consider some of the following methods and your small business will soon be the go-to place for skilled, driven and talented individuals to work. Pay and Benefits Should Be Competitive When you’re running a small business, the idea of paying regular salaries to your employees will always be on your mind. Keeping up with bills and ever rising costs will never be easy, but you have to offer a competitive salary in order to attract the right type of people to your business. You should also consider all elements of a compensation plan so that your employees always feel valued for their contributions at your workplace. It may be worth talking to your current staff members to see what would be most important to them so you can assess it in the near future. Create a Career Development Plan Working towards the next goal is certainly something that most career driven individuals are keen to do. Staying stagnant in the same role for a prolonged period of time can reduce motivation and cause issues with staff retention. Making sure that there are clear progression opportunities will help to bring in the most talented and focused employees who are willing to put in the work and climb the ladder within your business. Adopt an Eco-Conscious Approach More and more employees are looking for workplaces that put the environment at the forefront and actively choose sustainable processes. Taking care of the planet and going green with your business may help you to align with the right talent for your company. Although this might not be the priority of everyone, it’s certainly a very popular value that a number of people carry in the modern day. Working in an environment where sustainability is a priority is extremely appealing and these people will help you to work alongside like minded colleagues within your business. Your small business goes above and beyond you as an individual; it’s also about the people who work for you and the potential employees you could be onboarding very soon. You can be sure that you’re reaching out to the right type of people and attracting the best possible talent by offering competitive salaries and benefits and working in a sustainable way that always keeps the environment in mind too. Hopefully, these ideas will give you a huge advantage when it comes to bringing in new people who would be an asset to your business.
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