Nutrition & Foodservice Edge Magazine - March/April 2023 - 21

HOW TO DO MORE
WITH LESS AND
REDUCE FOOD
BY GILLES STASSART, CEC
WITH RISING FOOD COSTS and
continued labor issues, foodservice
professionals are already doing more
with less every day-making the most
of their people and products with a
constant eye on waste reduction. Menu
planning today often involves as much
focus on labor and inventory as it does
on ingredients and nutrition.
When every penny counts,
streamlining your operations can
increase margins while showcasing
your team's skills. According to
Feeding America, nearly 120 billion
pounds of food is wasted in the
United States each year despite
the ongoing food insecurity crisis.
Homes, restaurants, and foodservice
operations can all contribute to
shifting this reality and reducing the
number of items that transition from
the refrigerator to the garbage can.
THE CYCLING TRIFECTA
Foodservice operations spend a
lot of time and money finding and
purchasing the ideal ingredients to
meet their patrons' needs, one of
the reasons that waste reduction
is so important. With that in mind,
operations can maximize prep time
and minimize food waste with the
trifecta of precycling, upcycling, and
recycling.
Precycling
Like it sounds, precycling is about
thinking ahead to improve food
ordering, purchase and usage through
regular communication with staff,
vendors, distributors, and sales reps.
Taking inventory and planning ahead
will help you right-size your orders.
This is where a strong relationship
with sales reps or distributors can
go a long way. They can likely help to
pinpoint quantities and identify multiuse
products.
Upcycling
This is learning to use all of the
food that is ordered to get closer
to the ultimate goal of zero waste.
Repurposing leftover baked goods
for desserts or croutons is a great
example of upcycling, as is using
onion trimmings, carrot peels, and
other vegetables for a broth or stock.
Foodservice operations are getting
more creative with upcycling all the
time.
Recycling
This is the last pillar and involves
disposing of unavoidable waste to
support local partners and give back to
the community.
Together, these three practices will
create efficiencies and cost savings
while reducing the number of
perishable items that go unused in
your operation.
REMAKING AND
REIMAGINING FAVORITE
RECIPES
When you look at your tried-and-true
recipes with fresh eyes, you might
discover opportunities to repurpose
many of the sweet and savory
ingredients you already use every day.
Standardized recipes and value-added
products can play a significant role in
shrinking food waste.
When updating menus, the more
applications you can use an ingredient
for, the better. Product versatility is
the name of the game here-items
with multiple uses can create cohesive
menus with popular products and
maximize every order. Personally,
I like to make sure that everything
I purchase has at least three
applications.
For example, biscuit dough can be used
as appetizers, made into waffles, used
as sandwich carriers/flatbreads or
breadbasket sides, and also as dessert.
Likewise, cinnamon rolls can be turned
into French toast, monkey bread, or
bread puddings. Your team's creativity
can really shine when you determine
how single products can be used in
multiple ways.
waste
NUTRITION & FOODSERVICE EDGE | MARCH-APRIL 2023 21
Nutrition & Foodservice Edge Magazine - March/April 2023

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