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Contrary to popular belief, food delivery and sustainability go hand in hand, like peanut butter and jelly, like gin and tonic. Recent reports reveal that ordering food delivery can even leave a lower carbon footprint than buying groceries. Yes, you read that right. According to the research, food deliveries have lower average greenhouse gas emissions than grocery store meals, and grocery store meals generate more waste.
At the same time, customers are becoming more environmentally conscious – they tend to like restaurants to use more environmentally friendly practices. While switching to more sustainable options in terms of packaging and inventory, prioritizing sustainability will likely help your restaurant increase sales and stand out from the competition in a big way.
Read on to learn how implementing six of the best sustainability practices in restaurants or meal delivery services will benefit your results. From introducing food delivery in sustainable packaging to creating a seasonal menu, there are various options to try.
Top 6 Ways to Make Your Restaurant Delivery More Sustainable
Buy Local Inventory
When it comes to sustainability, stocking your kitchen with local ingredients and supplies is a surefire way to reduce your restaurant’s carbon footprint. If you can grow your own produce on a rooftop, in a backyard, or at a local garden, all the better! Your customers will be impressed. If that’s not an option, try reaching out to small and family-owned businesses to learn about their production processes and labor. The key is knowing where the ingredients come from and how they’re produced. From there, consider letting your customers know the story of that order through blogging on your site and social media posts.
Introduce a Seasonal Menu
Have you ever found yourself throwing out spoiled produce? Get organized ahead of time and plan to sync your menu with seasonal produce. You don’t have to create a separate menu for each season, but mapping out what items are in season year-round versus special seasonal items effectively reduces waste. Introducing seasonal specials or swapping out an ingredient for whatever is in season reduces travel time for your ingredients and is great for the planet, as well as being a fun change for your customers. If you market fresh ingredients to your customers correctly, they will likely cover any resulting increase in cost.
Adjust Your Menu Based on Food Waste, Popular Items, and More
Thinking about seasonality when it comes to inventory is an important first step in making your restaurant sustainable. Sit down with your menu and think about what items are causing you problems. For example, do you regularly throw out spoiled ingredients? It might be helpful to think about cutting back on offerings and focusing on your best-selling items. Next, encourage ingenuity among your employees. Developing a system for dealing with excess ingredients is a great idea (perhaps you could use extra food to your advantage by creating special sauces, broths, smoothies, etc.). Making a plan to avoid throwing food away will ensure you waste as little as possible during your restaurant’s preparations.
Make Your Virtual Menu
If your restaurant or delivery service has been open amid the pandemic, you’ve likely already switched from physical menus to a QR code or electronic menu. Permanently implementing this practice will eliminate paper waste and costs associated with printing, a simple yet effective way to lower your business’ carbon footprint.
Try Composting
Did you know that 60-80% of all restaurant trash is food waste? Every restaurant worker has brought a barely eaten-plate back to the kitchen at one time or another. While offering smaller portions helps eliminate waste, there will always be customers who don’t finish what they ordered. Instead of throwing away leftovers, consider composting. Composting requires little equipment and education, and is a very positive step for your food system and the local environment.
Replace Single-Use Plastic with Reusable Containers
As many restaurants transitioned to delivery-only amid the pandemic, plastic waste became a huge issue. So much so that experts predict plastic waste could increase by 40% over the next decade if packaging doesn’t evolve. Thankfully, in early 2021, restaurants began breaking away from single-use plastics. The good news for you is that swapping plastic for greener materials only requires a few small changes. Offer reusable plates and cups. For takeout and delivery, swap plastic for compostable, plant-based packaging.
Do You Want to Attract New Customers? Show Them that You Care about their Future and the Planet
Why are fast food giants like McDonald’s and Domino’s Pizza making a big bet on sustainability? Because it’s a major factor in where their customers spend their money. A recent study showed that more people would be willing to pay more for a sustainable product. Sustainably marketed food products, like carbonated beverages and cookies, grew more than 100% between 2015 and 2019, compared to their overall categories, each of which only grew about 10%. If these numbers haven’t convinced you to commit to more environmentally friendly practices in your restaurant, consider that the food and hospitality industry as a whole is investing in innovative technology to benefit its customers and the planet. To grow with the category and your customers, think ahead.
In 2021, your customers’ purchasing decisions are driven by more than just price and quality. Brand purpose and values play a significant role in where people choose to spend their money. And as society becomes more environmentally conscious, it’s critical that your business aligns with this cultural shift by considering the impact your practices have on the planet.
