Unfortunately, consumers didn’t accept the products because they perceived the bags to be excessively noisy.  Sales began to drop. PepsiCo recently announced they are shelving the compostable bag for five out of six Sun Chips flavors, retaining it only for the original Sun Chips flavor.

We can all hope this represents a temporary setback on the road to using more renewable, non-fossil-fuel based food packaging.

This example illustrates the proven reality that few, if any, environmental or social sustainability initiatives will actually be sustained if they are not also financially viable.   The balance between people, planet and profit must always be a part of any sustainability plan or initiative.

This is one of the reasons we, at LeanPath, are so excited about food waste prevention.  It is one of the clearest areas on the foodservice sustainability landscape which pays large dividends – financially, environmentally, and socially – quickly.

The good news: Some operators (specifically, those with repeat customers and warewashing capabilities) can reduce this take-out waste by offering reusable take-out containers.

I attended a presentation at the recent NACUFS conference by Audrey Copeland (G.E.T. Enterprises) and Rita Gordish (ARAMARK Higher Education) about how this is working in colleges and universities. Here’s the process:

1. The operator sells its customers reusable clambshell containers.   These should be NSF 36 certified (a dinnerware standard).  Example: G.E.T. Enterprises’ Eco-Takeout containers.
2. Customers buy a take-out meal and return the dirty (but rinsed) container to a collection station near the cashiers at the foodservice establishment.  They receive a token or card that proves they returned a takeout container
3. When the customer needs a take-out , they present their token to the server and the food is provided in a clean reusable take-out container.

This approach allows the operator to wash and sanitize the take-outs using traditional warewashing capabilities.  The customer simply needs to return the take-out and pick up a clean one or a token each time.   This closed loop system ensures all participants “buy-in” and then each effectively owns one share in the system.

To launch this type of program, operators will need to consider:

1. Policies for handling damaged containers.
2. How to respond to lost containers (offer a discounted replacement)?
3. Decide whether to eliminate other take-out alternatives or apply a surcharges for disposable take-out containers.
4. Educate customers about leakage risks – the lack of a rubber seal on some of these reusables is what allows them to meet the NSF standards. However, it can lead to liquid leakage if the container becomes inverted during transport.
5. How to track participation.  Tokens work, but new POS advances may eliminate the need for them by automating the check-in and check-out process using ID cards.
6. Drying time for these items may take a few extra minutes.
7. How to collect the dirty reusables and keep them away from clean food?  Very doable, the process just needs to be defined.

Reusable take-outs represent an exciting industry advance. They can help operators cut costs and cut waste, and the implementation is not difficult. 

Bottom line: If you have repeat take-out customers and warewashing capabilities, you should definitely consider offering a reusable take-out container program.

Sadly, it’s also common to see many guests in the same dining room eating the same meals off disposables.  They could have selected reusables, but for some reason they went with the higher-cost, more wasteful approach of a single-use item.

While there may be good reasons for this choice (saving half a meal for later, needing portability due to a short meal period), I sense there often is no reason. In many cases, these diners have selected single-use disposables without much or any thought, grabbing the closest, most convenient serviceware.

This reflects a broader lack of attention in our society to the consequences of waste.  For many years, we’ve not needed to think much about where our waste streams go.  Waste costs have been low and visibility about downstream impacts have been limited.  As a result, we’ve not conditioned ourselves to pay attention.

But that needs to change – and will – as society awakens to the cost and impact of waste.

In foodservice,  we can begin to influence customer habits and default choices in a positive way, by: 1) offering customer education, 2) using upcharges strategically for disposables, and 3) providing positive feedback to staff and guests when waste reduction successes occur. Through this reinforcement, we will motivate foodservice customers to think twice before they grab a foam plate when a china option is also available.

In making a better choice, customers will feel good about the positive impact they’re making.   That is a gift of customer satisfaction which benefits both the customer and the operator.

There’s a big environmental, financial and customer-satisfaction “win” lurking in this area for those operators willing to tackle it.

Why is the case?

Perhaps one reason is that at least 30% of the meal volume in a healthcare foodservice operation involves patient feeding. And those specialized meals have historically relied on specific types of single-use items and/or reusable meal delivery systems (manufactured by companies such as Aladdin Temp-Rite, Burlodge, and Dinex).

But this could be evolving with the introduction of compostable disposable products designed specifically for healthcare.  Burlodge is the first out of the gate with its Eversio line for patient feeding.   The products — which will be available in September 2010 — include specialized trays, bowls, and cutlery that are BPI certified compostable except for the cutlery pieces.

This product introduction will provide U.S. healthcare foodservice operators with new, environmentally-preferable purchasing choices that could reduce the amount of disposable product going to landfills.  It may also spur innovation from other competitors in the market.  Burlodge expects the primary market to be acute care facilities because of “volume and operational savings” although all healthcare segments would see infection control and disaster preparedness benefits.

At LeanPath, we believe reusables usually represent a better alternative to disposables.     Yet we fully recognize there are situations where disposables meet a unique operator need, especially in acute care environments.  Burlodge’s product should be an intriguing alternative for those operations.

The answer depends on who will handle the composting – keep in mind that many commercial composters handle yard waste but cannot or will not accept food. Those that do handle food waste will usually accept all food waste (pre-consumer and post-consumer) as well as plant-based compostable disposables (e.g. items made from plant materials such as corn, potato, cellulose, soy and sugar).

These waste streams should be free from contamination, and any disposable ware should be BPI-certified as compostable. The BPI “Compostable Label” indicates an item meets one of two science-based ASTM standards. To qualify as compostable, the item must break down into carbon dioxide, water and biomass at the same rate as paper. The final product needs to disintegrate to established levels, cannot exceed toxicity limits and must be able to support plant life. Some commercial composters have more stringent requirements than the BPI label, so check your compostable disposable choices with your composting partner to be certain.

Keep in mind: just because an item claims it is “biodegradable” does not mean it is “compostable.”

Resources:

• Biodegradable Products Institute

• Healthcare Without Harm Guide to Bio-based Service Ware

The best solution is to reuse service ware – convert from disposables to durables.  But this is not be possible in many scenarios.

The alternative is to buy environmentally preferable disposables, but this can be tricky.  Is paper always better than plastic?  Is plastic always better than foam?  What happens if the paper is bleached or coated?

Here are two resources to help you consider the pros and cons of your purchasing decisions:

• Healthcare Without Harm has created an excellent whitepaper that digs into the complexity of these issues and should be read by all foodservice operators.  Download it here.

• The City of Portland, Oregon has developed a whitepaper titled “Compostable Plastic: Does it Work in Portland.”   It identifies some challenges associated with bio-plastic disposables.  While I’m confident bio-plastic disposables deserve consideration as part of an overall  foodservice packaging strategy, operators definitely need to think about the issues in this whitepaper.  Specifically, how will these disposables integrate into the local composting, recycling and trash collection infrastructure?

Both of these resources offer pragmatic “news you can use.”

There is also a larger, more theoretical discussion going on in the industry.  It has to do with the carbon footprint of various compostable disposables v. traditional options.  Not everyone agrees on how to interpret the science that’s been completed, but there is a lot of data out there.  While this consensus emerges, most will at least agree that oil is a non-renewable  resource so we can’t build our future assuming we can throw away foam and plastic forever.

Catering orders typically increase during the holiday season, making this the perfect time to focus on reducing catering food waste. Changes you make now will benefit your operation year-round, especially as catering growth returns in 2010. Whether you offer buffet, banquet, off-premise, or drop-off services, you have a big opportunity to save food cost by reducing pre-consumer food waste.  We will post 5 tips on reducing Catering Waste over the next few days.

1. Slay the Myth: “It’s Already Paid For – Waste Doesn’t Matter”. Some well-intentioned staff members may believe their hands are tied controlling food waste because the customer paid upfront for a “guaranteed” guest count.  In most cases, our customer  actually hired us to provide a super catering service (e.g. dinner for 100 with a certain menu) and will defer to our judgment on the best way to purchase, prep and serve that meal.  Be confident in your judgment – based on your experience there are usually ways to control waste while still meeting the guarantee.  Ask questions at catering meetings about the needs of the group, including gender, generational, and demographic preferences.   Adjust production lists and prep sheets based on what you learn (and prior history, if it’s a repeat customer).

Check out the full issue of the LeanPath newsletter: Food Waste Flyer – Volume 5

Lets do this!  Our friends at Waste Aware Scotland are spending the news about the first International Plastic Bag Free Day on Saturday, September 12th: http://tinyurl.com/mgor6s

This is a great way to ‘source reduce‘ all those nasty plastic bags we get from the store.  Take a reusable cloth bag, use your backpack, messenger bag or just your pockets.  (Do you really need a bag for a pack of gum and a Snapple?)

Mark your calendars. Forward this e-mail to all your friends and colleagues!

PS:  Those plastic bags are made out OIL.  If you want your fuel prices to stay the same (or go down) – reduce your dependence on other oil-based products…like disposable plastic bags.

http://news.cnet.com/2300-11128_3-10001426.html?part=rss&tag=rsspr.6250028&subj=news

Does your community do this?  If not, recommend it.  Every little bit helps.

This article gives an insider view on starting and running a composting plan at special events and festivals.  It mentions a few mistakes and pitfalls to avoid when planning a ‘green’ event.  The “Hints and Tips” section at the bottom of the article are really great.  You can use these ideas even if you aren’t planning something as massive as a State Fair or National Earth Day celebration.  Try them out for your company picnic or next Farmer’s Market.

It’s almost September (just 1 day away!) and the summer festival season is winding to a close.  Keep these “Hints and Tips” nearby when planning next year’s event.

Insider’s Guide To Compostables Collection At Events  http://www.jgpress.com/archives/_free/001918.html