for a
sustainable
catering
+
Authors
Felipe Celis (CETT-UB)
Gaby Susanna (Plataforma Aprotem els Aliments)
With the support of
City Council of Barcelona
CETT-UB Barcelona School of Tourism, Hospitality and Gastronomy
English version & translation: Karen Luyckx (Feedback Global)
Final review: Helena Appleton (Feedback Global)
Authors
Felipe Celis (CETT-UB)
Gaby Susanna (Plataforma Aprotem els Aliments)
Graphic design and layout
Fundació Espigoladors
Original version published in December 2019 / English version published in May 2021
Acknowledgements
The starting point of this guide was the nal project of the interuniversity degree of
Culinary and Gastronomic Sciences of the University of Barcelona and the Polytechnic
University of Catalonia UB-UPC) by Esther Faus and Fiorella del Carpio, students of
the Barcelona School of Tourism, Hospitality and Gastronomy. They interviewed the
following chefs and catering teams to whom we are very grateful for the experiences
and advice shared: Clara Balmaña, Rosa Batalla, Sergi de Meià, Victor Quintillà, Ada
Parellada, Nikoletta Theodoridi, Raül Torrent and Laura Veraguas.
Another starting point was the Hungarian guide “Event catering Food Waste Reduction
Guidelines” from the Food Value Forum, which they shared with us through the European
project Refresh.
The authors also want to thank Fernando Martínez-Conde, Bernat Benito, and Dani
Giménez for their review and positive feedback on the guide.
Most of the photographs were taken during the catering service provided by BonAprot
at the Final Conference of the European project on food waste Refresh, which served as
a pilot test of the guide. Our thanks also to the photographer Sebastian Szulfer for his
permission to use his photographs.
Table of contents
TABLES
Table 1: Recommended grammages per serving according to the type of food. Source: Own creation.
Table made with the help of SENC 2004, adult recommended servings by type of food.
Table 2: Loss control. Source: Own creation
FIGURES
Figure 1: Information sheets for the client. Source: Menjador Ca la Rosa
Figure 2: Hierarchy for the management of organic waste. Source: US Environmental Protection
Agency (USEPA)
1
Communication
Pg. 6
Presentation
Pg. 4
2
Measurement
Pg. 10
3
Priorities in food waste
management
Pg. 11
4
Menu design
Pg. 12
5
Purchasing policy
Pg. 16
6
Event planning
Pg. 17
7
Stock management
Pg. 19
8
Menu preparation
Pg. 19
9
Service
Pg. 20
10
What to do
with leftovers
Pg. 22
11
Management
of nal waste
Pg. 23
12
Monitoring
and control
Pg. 23
Annexes
Pg. 25
References
Pg. 27
Summary
Pg. 28
With the support of:
-5--4-
Delivering a catering service minimizing waste is possible.
We want to show that delicious and nutritious food can go hand in hand with sustaina-
bility.
The hospitality sector contributes signicantly to greenhouse gas emissions. Conventio-
nal food production, processing, delivery and preparation are processes that are associa-
ted with a large consumption of fossil fuels as well as the pollution of land and water,
the proliferation of plastics and other non-organic waste and local air pollution caused
by the transport.
Food waste occurs at all stages of the food cycle, including the hospitality sector, has se-
rious impacts on society and contributes to climate change. Throwing away food means
wasting all the energy and resources invested in its production.
The great challenge we face is twofold: to provide food in a healthy and nutritious way
and to do it in a way that respects the planet. We cannot do this without recognizing the
true value of food.
This good practice guide therefore aims to provide tools to organise and run a more
sustainable and responsible food service in the easiest way possible. For this reason, the
guide is not all-inclusive and does not go into detail. We assume that you already have a
broad overview of the issues we are facing.
Moving towards more sustainable and respectful food systems involves recovering
the value of food and you, cooks and associated teams have a great responsibility as a
powerful voice within the food system. You work with a high-value raw material: food,
and your behaviour acts as a reference point.
Our starting point has been the Hungarian guide “Event Catering Food Reduction Guide-
lines” of the European Refresh project (eu-refresh.org) and we have also had the inva-
luable contributions of cooks, chefs and collaborators: Clara Balmaña, Raül Torrent and
Rosa Batalla, Sergi de Meià, Ada Parellada, Víctor Quintillà, Nikoletta Theodoridi and
Laura Veraguas. Your experience and observations have been very helpful to us.
Presentation
Did you also know that a third of the food produced in the
world is lost in transit from the eld to the plate each year
(FAO, 2011) 1,300 million tons of food that is wasted annually
along the supply chain.
Did you know that just half of the food currently
wasted could nourish the entire population that
currently suffers from hunger in the world
(Manifest Prou Malbaratar Aliments, PAA, 2014).
This guide is aimed above
all at commercial catering
service teams (private events,
conferences, congresses, etc.) and
catering for anchor institutions
(schools, hospitals, etc.) with the
aim to provide solutions that
facilitate the execution of the
most sustainable and responsible
service possible.
-7--6-
A conscientious, motivated and committed team is essential to
modify behaviours and make progress. Beyond the knowledge
and skills on food safety, allergies and intolerances, the team
must also be aware of the wider potentially negative impacts
of their service. The rst step to reduce waste is, therefore, to
educate the people behind the service. The more knowledge, the
more you generate impact and the more change you generate.
1.1. Training your sta
The manager of a food service can inuence and promote the reduction of waste but in
the end, the person in charge of the day-to-day organisation, storage and preparation is
the service staff. Continuous training and encouragement are crucial to ensure proper
training of each and every employee, especially if there are many shifts. The more
training strategies, the more effective (eg in-person training but also clearly visible
signs at strategic points).
1 Address the scale of the problem,
impacts, the need to take measures
and the opportunity that the circular
economy presents us.
2 Give value to food, the primary mate-
rial with which we work.
3 We recommend that a single person
be responsible for purchases and
procurement to avoid mistakes and
unnecessary purchases.
4 Analyse the catering service supply
chain with the team and identify
the points / spaces and processes
where waste is generated, quantify
the waste and look at why it was
generated.
5 Take care of storage to ensure that
the food does not spoil before using it.
6 Design and prepare the menu to re-
duce waste during food preparation
and reduce leftovers returning to the
kitchen.
7 Monitor, control and prevent conta-
mination.
8 Present and share the menu with
the whole team (including front of
house staff). In addition to helping
to improve the menu, knowing
the dishes well enables the staff
to present them to the diner with
sensitivity and detail and thus reduce
the possibility that the guests do not
like it or there are intolerances or
allergens.
9 Foster a uid dialogue between the
restaurant or canteen and kitchen in
order to benet from an exchange
of information (and value). Not only
from kitchen to restaurant, but also
in the opposite direction in terms of
customer preferences, last minute
changes, customer feedback, etc. Ma-
naging this information can mark a
major change.
1. Communication
Basic measures for working with the team
Archive image. Source: Pexels