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Sustainable technology reduces waste while maintaining efficiency.
A recent reFED study estimated that roughly 11 million tons of restaurant food waste costs businesses about $ 25 billion per year.
The report also notes that every dollar invested in reducing food waste can save about $ 8 in costs for restaurants.
In addition to embracing green strategies in your restaurant operations, investing in restaurant-specific sustainable technology can help all types of restaurants reduce their carbon footprint and become more sustainable and environmentally friendly businesses.
Paper waste and food waste are just two of many areas of restaurant operations whose volume can be managed and reduced with the help of restaurant technology solutions.
Sustainability means spending less, saving more and being seen well by even the most demanding consumers.
1. Point of sale technology for customers
Deforestation, cutting down trees to make paper and other materials, is destroying the environment and negatively impacting the future of wildlife, ecosystems, and even the climate.
The restaurant industry alone contributes 1.500 billion pounds of paper waste annually, in receipts alone. Printing menus, gift cards, paper billing to and from vendors, single-use napkins, paper-based payroll systems, etc., produces a staggering amount of paper waste.
Did you know that a paper receipt can cost up to five cents each and that up to 93 percent of these receipts may not be eligible for recycling due to the dye used to improve readability?
The national initiative “Skip the Slip” and Green America report detail the environmental and health impacts of paper receipts; They proposed a bill in California to eliminate them entirely.
Businesses outside the hospitality industry are adopting cloud-based expense processing systems like Expensify, which eliminates the need for paper invoices and payment processing.
The use of kiosks or tablets to facilitate the order in your restaurant also reduces the possibility of human error: the customer is the one who enters their own order, so that nothing is lost between the order that is taken and what the kitchen receives.
While electronic menu boards and customer point-of-sale technology require an initial investment in displays, kiosks, or tablets, the long-term cost savings and environmental protection benefits make this sustainable technology option worthwhile. increasingly.
2. Kitchen screens
In addition to adopting digital menu boards, kiosks, and portable point-of-sale technology, another investment in sustainable technology that reduces paper waste in a restaurant is kitchen display screens, which eliminate the need to use paper to carry food. order to kitchen.
By creating a seamless order entry and fulfillment process with the portable point of sale in the restaurant dining room and kitchen displays, restaurants can reduce paper waste while facilitating seamless and accurate communication between the dining room. and the kitchen.
The cost of the paper is insane. At nearly $ 50-60 per box, it’s obvious that using screens in the kitchen and going paperless is a lot cheaper.
3. Payroll and scheduling software
Hiring, scheduling, and taking payroll are all aspects of restaurant staff management that can now be paper-free due to the rise of end-to-end people management systems.
Posting break room hours is a thing of the past, as many restaurants switch to mobile-friendly, cloud-based employee scheduling software that allows staff to view their hours, request shift changes, change their availability, Request time off and keep track of hours worked from your laptop or phone.
4. An integrated CRM solution
Are you still using paper to attract new customers, increase event attendance, or promote limited-time offers?
Al integrate your CRM system (Customer Relationship Management) with your POS system, you can reduce the amount of paper used to promote events, special menus, limited-time offers, happy hour menus, or even upcoming changes in opening hours.
Here’s a great example of how you can lean on your CRM to attract more customers and reduce your carbon footprint:
- Did you know that sales of plant-based meat alternatives, such as The Impossible Burger o Beyond burger, have they increased 24 percent in the last year? More consumers have realized the impact of meat on their well-being and the environment.
- The thing is, meat eaters are actually the largest group buying these plant-based meat alternatives, followed by vegetarians, vegans, and flexitarians.
- The trend based on using alternatives to meat continues to increase in restaurants. Come up with plant-based dishes, alternatives to a traditional empanada, bolognese, etc., and then create a marketing campaign that targets diners who have bought a meat dish from your restaurant in recent months.
- Then, analyze the sales performance of the item using your restaurant reports. If you saw a return on your inventory investment, consider adding it to your regular letter.
Taking small steps, with the help of sustainable technology, eliminating paper, tracking and addressing waste, and selectively introducing new items to the menu, can gradually reduce your restaurant’s carbon footprint. Make sure your clients are aware of what action you are taking and why.