Fighting food waste at the Charlotte Doubletree by Hilton

In any hospitality-driven business, food waste is a challenge.

“Understanding the consumer mindset is something we’re passionate about, and concerns about food waste fall into that category” says Entegra’s Chef John Csukor, Head of Culinary North America. “For our part, we regularly help our clients audit their menus not only to help them save money, but to eliminate waste. Sustainability is part of our DNA as a company.”

And with greater challenges in food pricing, labor availability, and sustainability expectations from both guests and your organization—the demand for foodservice efficiency is greater than ever.

Food waste is an important sustainability issue.

According to Leanpath, an Entegra supplier and leader in automated food waste prevention, the typical food service kitchen will waste 4-10% of its food purchases before it reaches a diner’s plate. And the cost of food waste impacts operations beyond the kitchen too:

_{Source: Leanpath}

Consumers care about food waste

According to Technomic’s Journey to 2030: Forecasting the Future of Foodservice, presented by at the 2024 National Restaurant Association Show, over 80% of consumers say reducing food waste/food loss reduction is an important sustainability issue.

Tackling the food waste challenge: Charlotte Doubletree by Hilton

In May, 2024, Executive Chef Ahmed Azizy and his team kicked off a food waste pilot program with Leanpath. The Doubletree makes a great case study with about 400 rooms and a busy F&B program that includes a restaurant, coffee shop and marketplace.

Getting started and early results of the Leanpath waste reduction program

Helmed by the project’s “Champion,” Executive Chef Ahmed Azizy, the kitchen staff kicked off with a robust training session alongside Leanpath’s Executive Chef Robb White, a.k.a. the Food Waste Prevention Guru.

Using Leanpath trackers, Doubletree’s kitchen operators began analyzing their food waste via a “snapshot” – like the sample below—that even includes photos of each tracked portion.

Q&A with Executive Chef Ahmed Azizy

Q. What was your initial reaction to the Leanpath program?

A. To be honest, my first reaction was that I wasn't sure how tracking your food waste could help save money. But now that we are doing the work, we’re seeing where the problems are more clearly.

Q. How has your kitchen staff transitioned from "beginners” to regular users of the Leanpath technology in your kitchen?

A. By getting familiar with the machine and tracking the food waste daily, we’ve really started to see the value of the program. The tracking process is now part of our daily routine.

Q. Were there any initial hurdles, and if so, how did you solve them?

A. The staff was a bit hesitant at first about using the new program. But after a couple of training sessions and repetition, they overcame the hurdle and any intimidation they had about pressing a wrong button has disappeared.

Q. What are some examples of preliminary food-saving results you've seen?

A. We are still assessing and evaluating, but by examining the dollar value of the food wasted, we were able to make some adjustments, which are already helping with savings.

Q. What are some examples of preliminary cost savings you’ve seen?

A. Controlling production, quantity and purchases are all ways we’ve started to see savings come to life.

A note from Entegra Culinary Consulting

Entegra’s tenured culinary collective gives F&B clients access to cost-saving purchasing, menu R&D, operational guidance and marketing.

Clients regularly count on Entegra to lead back-of-house efficiency studies to help kitchen operators uncover ways to reduce costs, mitigate inflation and reduce waste.

Want to learn more about decreasing food waste and saving more? The Entegra Culinary Consulting team can help. Contact us today for an informal conversation.

^{_{*Forecasting the Future of Foodservice presentation from the 2024 National Restaurant Association Show from Technomic, provider of insights into consumer, industry and menu trends in the U.S., Canada and 23 countries around the world.}}