Going Green?

Quote:

Originally Posted by foodnfoto 

Really, guys?.........

 

 

Doing nothing?

Not even a compost bin?

Well, you have to remember: one can only "reduce" what one has been wasting previously, right?

Those of us that are surviving probably adopted "green techniques" long before they became a "buzz word" and see little value in shouting it from the rooftops. Besides, why let the competition in on how to reduce costs BINGO!

Now, if you have a specific question, you might get some responses.
 

buying local

using corn or bamboo "disposables" or post consumer compostable shtuff

Use less disposable aluminum pans

Cambros or bulk beverages instead of individual drinks....or at least recyclable containers

designated trash cans at events

carpooling staff

using whole animals

raising some herbs

I work at a university with a huge catering department / residential / retail etc and they have been making strides in reducing there carbon footprint inlcuding rolling out a completely sustainable catering menu 2 new catering restuarants on campus.

we have reuseable boxed lunches

obivously buy local

we compost and donate a portion to a local farm

we do farm to fork events

our plastic silverware are 65% recycled material

u can buy recycled cardboard containers and grab n go containers

we have gone trayless at the school reducing water

we do green n go sustainable grab n go sandwiches, salads, etc

particpate with the farmers markets

we have a "green team" on campus a employee one and a student one (we hold contests to promote a different subject each month to encourage both staff and student to reduce there carbon footprint)

I also used to work for a Bon Appetit B&I and each year they do a local day where they will only serve items purchased within 50 miles of there location and they also have a cool little interactive online tool that tells you what food does the most damage and what not like "does your fish get for flyer miles then you"

you can also get into fairtrade and cage free eggs and the list could go on forever

My boss is big on the whole "green movement" She has been ordering the recyclable to-go containers etc. We also encourage our customers to bring in their own to-go cups for coffee/tea rather than using a paper one. We charge them the same price for the coffee, no matter the size of the container. (within reason of course)

As far as waste, not a lot gets wasted. I even save the veggie scraps and use them in our chicken stock (we use the chicken to make the chicken salad and the stock in the majority of our soups) Stale baguettes I tear into bite sized pieces and toss them in a pan with olive oil, herbs de provence and some whole garlic cloves and toast it in the oven to make croutons that our customers love to snack on. With the hot weather coming we have been stocking fresh mozzarella and buying organic heirloom tomatoes and basil from the local farmer's market and using them for specials. I just put a sandwich on the menu last week, a piece of baguette lightly toasted, drizzled with basil infused olive oil and topped with a slice of prosciutto de parma, couple slices of fresh mozzarella and a basil leaf. Served with a side salad of organic greens, clementine vinaigrette and whatever fruit was fresh at the farmers market. That has by far been the most popular lunch this week.

I also have a separate sealed bucket that we dump the coffee grounds in and those of us who have gardens at home take it home. My roses are beautiful because of it!

I operate a dining service for a top boarding school where we cater as well as provide daily meals. Among things we have done:

1. Switched to EcoLab's Apex system on our dish machine to reduce phosphates in our dish room

2. Recycle all food containers.

3. Channeled out discarded fryer oil to a biodiesel processor.

4. Went to all 70%+ post consumer recycled disposables

5. Kept over 4000 condiment bottles from landfills by using bulk product in refillable containers

6. Buy local, lots of local.Eggs, Beef, bakery etc.

7. Bought all student athletes reusable water bottles and quit sending out bottle water for trips.

8. Eliminated bottled water on catering

9. Certified organic coffee.

10. Trayless dining in cafeteria.

We are now in the midst of planning a remodel project that will have all Energy Star rated equipment in our kitchen.