Food Waste Focus

In a recent article, The Food Money Pit: How Food Waste Costs Thousands and How to Stop It, Michael De Groote of Deseret News wrote about Kerry K. Taylor, a frugal living blogger at SquawkFox.com and author of “397 Ways to Save Money.” While the article focused on consumer food waste, we can draw a number of parallels to the commercial foodservice market.

First, it’s a huge issue. The article cites a 2004 study that American households waste 14 percent of their food purchases. LeanPath has found that foodservice operators throw out 4-10% of food before it reaches a plate.

Second, if we’re going to fix the issue, we need to track what we’re wasting. “It is like keeping a budget,” Taylor said. “Unless you are keeping a budget it is hard to know where your money is going. Well, unless you know what food you are wasting, it is hard to know you should stop buying over that quantity. Track your food waste. Get the kids involved. I promise you that when you see what is being wasted it becomes a fun challenge to not waste as much food.”

The same is true for foodservice operators. LeanPath has found that when operators implement daily tracking using an automated system or even manual tracking, they reduce waste by as much as 50% and reduce their food costs by 2-4% or more.

For tips on how to stop wasting valuable food at home, check out the article. For tips on how to stop wasting valuable food at your foodservice operation, check out a 4-minute video on how food waste tracking works.