Like many restaurateurs your business is most likely to be your baby that makes you proud and causes you sleepless nights. There’s nothing wrong with that, you are passionate about the business, your clientele and delivering on excellence to every single customer. That makes good business sense, but you know what else makes good business sense? Preventing food wastage in your establishment. Food wastage in your restaurant is definitely costing you money and with the world hunger crisis it’s considered a moral no-no to waste food at all.

Food wastage is not intentional it often simply occurs without the staff even realising it, but it can be mitigated.

Food wastage in a restaurant is not simply food that the patrons did not consume. While this leftover food does play a part, especially in establishments that offer a buffet style service, there are other instances of food wastage that include mismanagement, over-cooking and incorrect storage. Any incorrectly prepared or spoiled foods are immediately thrown out. A lot of food is also wasted simply through presentation where food is cut away and thrown out to make the dish look beautifully presented.  Sometimes it can boil down to overproduction of food and at the end of a shift the leftovers are dumped. Another area of concern that affects most restaurants is the issue of pests. If pests get into any of the food stuffs stored in the restaurant it will immediately result in food wastage. Pests in a restaurant will put the entire operation, patrons and staff at risk and the spread of food-borne bacteria and illnesses can have hair-raising consequences. Not to mention that the establishment will be deemed as non-compliant with municipal regulations and the Department of Health’s legislature. In order to meet these requirements and remain compliant pest control should be handled by a professional service provider.
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Food wastage can be prevented by employing some simple strategies.

By mitigating food wastage restaurateurs can cut down on their waste management costs and save money by never over-purchasing on non-perishable food items. Furthermore, wasted food is most likely to end up in landfills and food rotting in landfills produces methane which is a dangerous greenhouse gas. So diminishing food wastage protects the environment too. Simple food wastage prevention strategies include reducing over-purchasing of non-perishable food by creating a system of ordering what is needed just before it is needed. Also, reducing food wastage during preparation and ensuring your staff are skilled and educated on how to prepare food with little to no wastage. Consider using the leftover unused food for different dishes – for instance, the bread left after a service can be toasted and made into croutons and vegetables cuts can be used in soups. Pay attention to your menu and eliminate those dishes that don’t sell regularly. Consider your serving sizes as perhaps they are too large and encourage your customers to take their left over food home with them.

The mitigating of food wastage together with a clean and pest-free establishment will make for a profitable restaurant business.

As mentioned earlier, pests in your restaurant can seriously harm your business. Even if you are lessening your food wastage, if your business is attracting pests then you will end up wasting food anyway. Pests are attracted to areas that provide them with food and water and by keeping your restaurant, and particularly your kitchen, spotless you can prevent a pest infestation. Ideally, you should have a professional restaurant contract cleaning service that maintains your hygiene standards and a professional pest control provider who can ensure you remain pest-free.
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The Specialists are experts in both restaurant contract cleaning and pest control and can ensure that your food business remains hygienically clean and free from any nasty infestations. Please contact The Specialists to find out more about our services.

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