Ask Soledad Hearon where her passion for food waste prevention comes from, and she goes straight back to her childhood.

Ask any of the NGOs or research organizations focused on the global food waste crisis how we get this problem under control, and they'll tell you the same thing: big organizations need to set big food waste reduction goals. That's exactly what Sodexo North America did. The region set a 50% food waste reduction target, and crushed it.

BHP is the largest mining company in the world, and operates remote housing sites for its workers. As one shift may be returning at dawn and eating dinner, another may be getting ready to depart and eating breakfast, all primarily buffet service.

For healthcare foodservice operators, the pressure is coming from all sides. There are mandates to cut food costs, goals to increase operating revenue, and internal sustainability targets.

Five years ago, Georgia Tech transitioned from a contract-managed model to a self-operation dining program. With a massive operation serving 7,000 to 8,000 meals a day in dining halls alone, the Institute needed a way to manage tight margins and rising food costs.