The Consultant - Q1 2009 - (Page 53) Waste Management Initiatives in Europe cardboard recycled and other environmental indicators like electricity, gas and water usage and distribution kilometres • provide recycling facilities to Whitbread operations. Total amount of cardboard recycled (mainly transit packaging) increased from 618 to 894 tonnes in the group's latest financial year, with 172 new sites receiving cardboard recycling facilities. The weight of glass recycled during the same period – mainly from drinks bottles sold in hotels and restaurants – increased 38 percent. Around one million litres of spent cooking oil from kitchen frying was converted into bio-diesel for use as fuel for heating and vehicles. Other Whitbread recycling initiatives include changes to takeaway packaging at Costa Coffee outlets, lowering the percentage of board and using more recycled plastic. A trial introduced in mid-2008 at a new “green” Premier Inn at Tamworth in the English midlands diverts and filters waste water from baths to toilets, cutting overall water usage by 20 percent. Another international hospitality business which has benefited from a publicly stated waste management policy is the Swedish-owned hotel chain Radisson SAS, part of the Rezidor group. These extend to practical measures in all areas of properties, from kitchens to function rooms, and include initiatives such as cardboard baling, glass and aluminium can recycling, paper recycling and even battery recycling (eg. from TV remote controls). New employees are immediately introduced to “Green Culture”, a mandatory two hour training session which is part of a Responsible Business policy promoted by posters and flyers throughout hotels. Radisson SAS says that these and other “green” schemes have lowered waste disposal costs significantly. Savings are not just in kitchens. By presenting customers their bills on monitors at reception instead of printing them, hundreds of sheets of paper and subsequently printer and paper costs are saved daily. dinner rush, you can have the highestefficiency kitchen. Even during Sustainability pays The reporting of sustainable practices has an obvious corporate communications attraction but a report published in July 2008 by the UK Retail and Consumer team of international consultants, PricewaterhouseCoopers, “Sustainability: Are consumers buying it?” suggested that the benefits may go further. Results from over 4000 interviews with consumers and industry executives, particularly in the food and beverage industries, indicated that companies which reported sustainability data consistently achieved higher returns on assets than those that did not. They also tended to outperform other companies in terms of gross margins and return on sales. Of the various responses which consumers had made in response to sustainability concerns in the past two years, recycling was cited by 73 percent. This is widely considered to be an area where the UK has significantly lagged European neighbours such as Germany and Scandinavia. The XG Super-High-Efficiency Ventilator is designed to deliver optimum collection efficiency at the lowest possible pressure drop, reducing ventilation noise and energy consumption. Equipped with optional UV results in 99% removal of all grease generated by cooking appliances. Not only is this high-efficiency rate key to reducing grease in the exhaust duct, fan and roof, but it also results in significant savings in duct cleaning. It’s the perfect marriage of quality and performance. The XG Series Super-High-Efficiency Ventilator • Available in all standard models • Super-low exhaust rates range from 100 to 300 CFM per lineal feet • Listed adjustable balancing damper allows proper balancing on multiple-hood applications To learn more, call 800.547.9696. Waste reduction at smaller restaurants Large multi-unit operators are tending to set the pace in developing new waste management initiatives but a few independent restaurant businesses have also been generating positive publicity which has caught the attention of customers, media and other restaurateurs. A notable addition to the London restaurant scene in 2008 was Water House, owned by regeneration agency Shoreditch Trust and run by the founders of Acorn House, another London restaurant with a stated commitment to fresh, seasonal and ethical produce and environmental sustainability. Breathe easy. First Quarter 2009 53
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