Food Waste Focus

There were two interesting articles published today in Iowa about foodservice operators using automated food waste tracking systems (from LeanPath) to minimize food waste and lower food costs. Lori Anderson from Iowa Health St. Luke’s Hospital noted in the Des Moines Register: “It was unbelievable the amount of food that was wasted. It might be [...]

Starches a sticky issue When starting a tracking/prevention program, it’s often the starches that are one of the highest waste items. Why? Starches (pasta, rice, potatoes, etc.) are an accompaniment to most dishes, thus are often produced in bulk while more “expensive” center of the plate items are more closely monitored.  It’s often not till we start tracking these [...]

The Iowa Health System is back in the news with this TV news story on KCCI-TV Des Moines. The story explains how Iowa Health has used automated food waste tracking systems to reduce food waste significantly. This story supports a core principal of waste management:  prevention and minimization should be our top priorities.  To achieve [...]

The Iowa Health System, which cares for 2.5 million patients each year,  has been working to prevent and minimize food waste at healthcare sites across the state of Iowa.  They started over three years ago, in 2008, and have grown the effort to six hospitals spanning the state. How has Iowa Health tackled source reduction [...]

On October 7th, the White House Council on Environmental Quality announced the eight winners of the 2010 GreenGov Presidential Awards. The winner in the “Good Neighbor” category was the Nutrition and Food Services Team at the VA Medical Center in Martinsburg, West Virginia.  They were recognized for the totality of their sustainability efforts, which include [...]

The American Hospital Association just unveiled a new web site designed to educate hospital CEO’s and trustees about sustainability in healthcare.   Titled the “Executive Primer on Hospital Environmental Sustainability” the site includes overviews of several topic areas, including Food. The food section of the web site discusses waste as one of the key trends [...]

Salad Bar: A thorny issue When starting a tracking/prevention program, it’s often the salad bar items them can be targeted early for an easy win. Why? Many cafe operations deem the salad bar easy to do, you set it up, keep it full and then throw it away.  It’s often not till we start tracking these [...]

Jill Scott is the Assistant Director of Food Services at Ohio Health’s Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, Ohio where she has served for four years. She previously was with Ohio State University in the Hospitality Management Program and in Campus Dining Services. Initial Expectations The team at Riverside has been using the LeanPath system since [...]

When tracking food waste, it’s invaluable to compare recent weeks against each other. Using a tool we call a Comparison Report you can highlight week to week changes and identify specific areas that are getting better as well as those that have gotten worse. With ValuWaste Advantage 4, operators now have the ability to create [...]

Breakfast: Cutting the Pork When starting a tracking/prevention program, it’s easy to overlook wasted breakfast meats. Why? Many cafe operations are focused on high volume lunch service, so the few stations that are open in the morning get setup early, loaded with par levels, so staff can focus on the upcoming lunch service.  However, if operators [...]