In Spain, more than 7 million tonnes of food is thrown away annually. It is the seventh most wasteful country in the European Union.
Households and the food industry are who discard the most. They are responsible for more than 70% of the food in good condition that ends up in the trash. Restaurants and supermarkets follow them, whose discarding food means the remaining 30%.
But, can we put an end to food waste?
Yes, we can. At least, it is possible to reduce food waste in restaurants and supermarkets. How? By using digital solutions that allow greater control of food waste.
Nowadays, we use mobile apps for almost everything. Why not an app to control the food waste which is generated in the hospitality and food service industry?zHow to reduce food waste in restaurants and hotels
It makes no difference if we talk about reducing food waste in restaurants or in hotel chains. In the end, that waste comes from the same place. From the kitchen.
Wasting food is a problem. A big one, indeed. And in the hospitality industry, it is an issue that may end up in a constant money leak.
So, if you already carry out a daily or weekly control of electricity, water or gas consumption in your hotel or restaurant, why not do the same to cut the amount of food you throw away?
This sort of processes is greatly simplified if you have a mobile application which works with templates and checklists adapted to your work system. With the Iristrace app you will be able to optimize the way you collect data and to reduce your workload in half.
A mobile phone or a tablet is the only thing you will need. A mobile device in your hand to answer the questions that have been previously designed by you or your team.
Here it goes and example of a checklist to work with when you want to reduce food waste in restaurants or hotels:
- How many expired products have gone into the rubbish bins? Between 1 and 5 / More than 5
- Has the unused food control panel been completed? Yes / No
- How much milk have been wasted at breakfast this week? Between 1 and 5 / Over 10
- How many loaves of bread were thrown away in the trash today? Less than 5 / More than 10
- Are there expired products or goods with close expiration dates in the warehouse? Yes / No
- How many food packages have been discarded this week for not keeping them correctly? Over 10 / Less than 10
There are hotels, for example, that take the problem of food waste very seriously. They not only put a stop to the problem of wasting food. In fact, they also donate the food which is not consumed in their social events to charities.
Why not give a second life to this food in good condition? What if we distribute it to food banks and charities?
Can supermarkets prevent food waste?
In addition to helping to control wasted food both in restaurants and hotels, the Iristrace app allows to prevent food waste in supermarkets and hypermarkets.
In Spain is not illegal for supermarkets to destroy or discard edible food. In France, on the contrary, there is a law which forces big supermarkets to give unsold food to charities.
There is no such thing in Spain. However, there are some supermarket chains that are already beginning to fight against food waste on their own initiative.
And what kind of processes can be done with Iristrace in a supermarket or in a shop. Thanks to its high flexibility, with the Iristrace app you will able to control:
- If food waste selection is monitored periodically by the person in charge.
- And, if there is any daily control to know in advance when foods must be discarded.
- The need for a report to know the reasons for discarding foods: breakage, expiration, shoplifting, lack of quality.
Collecting this sort of data by using a mobile device allows you to optimize your working methodology. Plus, you’ll save a lot of time. Furthermore, you will also know in real time the data you want to measure in your inspections. How? Through a fully customized dashboard with your own current work practices.
Would you like to know more about Iristrace mobile and web app? If you need further information on how to reduce food waste in restaurants and supermarkets, email us or get started for free to see how our app works.
