FROM THE CONSULTANTS by Carl Sacks
Components of Sustainable Catering, Part 3
Corporate sustainability The operational policies and procedures of any given catering company can (and do) have an impact on its carbon footprint. Delivery policies: Every delivery represents both a financial expense and a negative impact on the environment. Outbound deliveries are (of course) necessary for off- premise caterers, but there are tools to make these more efficient and less environmentally costly. These include fleet management and GPS routing systems for vehicles, delivery scheduling programs, and pricing to encourage off-peak deliveries and pick-ups.
Servingware offerings: There has always been a conflict between those who advocate for use of disposables, and those who promote use of permanent serving pieces (i.e., china, silver, and glass). Single use items seem to be wasteful by definition, but there are costs associated with permanent items as well, such as pickup and warewashing expenses. There are also concerns about minimizing the use of plastics, but there are many lines of sustainable servingware options available. Food waste: It is commonly accepted that about one-third of food is lost to waste in production. This is catastrophic for the planet— particularly when, even in a wealthy
Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of articles that discusses what sustainability means to caterers and their communities; part one looked at supply side sustainability and part two looked at demand side sustainability. We’ve already discussed supply and demand side sustainability variables. Now it’s time to review some other areas that influence how individual caterers can impact the overall sustainability of the industry.
FALL 2024 ■ CATERSOURCE
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