This Is Why Hospitality Is Unsustainable

“Meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” is the textbook definition of sustainability. We often think of the effects on the environment when we think of sustainability, and rightfully so…. But what about the financial sustainability that can be achieved through technology in a hospitality business, lets discuss it.

How bad is the problem?

Let’s talk numbers…

• Over a million tonnes of food waste is generated every year from UK hospitality businesses, ⅕ of those businesses are restaurants.
• There has been an increased concern for environmental matters amongst British diners of over 40% since the start of the pandemic.
• The UK has the highest amount of food waste in Europe.
• The hospitality industry wastes approximately £2.5 billion of food per year.

Some of these numbers are deeply shocking, and your hospitality business is contributing to this seemingly unavoidable issue. However, with ever-developing technology, solutions are on the horizon.

A vision for the future…

Innovative technology is being introduced into commercial kitchens across the UK, temperature recording devices placed inside your fridges & freezers come with a range of financial as well as environmental benefits.

Financial benefits:

• Reduced electricity usage and save on bills
• No more wasted paper on scrap notes
• Use time in a more productive and efficient way
• Increased food waste and higher waste disposal costs
• Reduce the risk of appliances over generating and breaking down

Environmental benefits:

• Reduce energy usage
• Less food going into landfills
• Optimal temperatures in your kitchen

TheSensee System allows you to do all this with two credit card-sized components, place the sensors in your fridges and freezers and automatically send hourly temperature recordings to the gateway where they will be stored and ready to download on your mobile device.

Sensee allows you to save time, money, and energy when it comes to your food safety and hygiene.

Helping hand with food safety?

Digital food safety is the easiest way to remove all risks of human error, with 100% accurate and paperless temperature recordings, they are always consistently ready for inspections.

A shocking 1/7 takeaways and 1/13 restaurants fail their food safety inspections, and one of the most defining scores is the food safety management systems. This essentially means how the operational side of your food safety is run within your business. Do you have a routine in place for temperature checks? Or is it whenever your kitchen porter remembers and does a rough estimate of the ones no one accounted for? Sounds more like it.

Sensee restores all confidence in your food safety management systems and will help you achieve a 5***** Food Hygiene Rating.�

Why is all of this important?

The ages of people between the start of the pandemic and the current date are larger than initially crosses the mind. Someone could have gone into the pandemic age of 16 and as the lockdown lifted turned 18, and they are the newest generation of consumers.�

A whopping 25% of millennials say they consider environmental concerns and sustainability when making any sort of purchase!

How can I make a difference?

• Reconsider your takeaway options – 61% of buyers make a conscious effort to reduce their use of single-use plastic. Paper, recyclable alternatives to outdated plastic cups and takeaway boxes are an easy switch to show your customers you care.
• Serve a reduced menu of seasonal choices – 49% of buyers buy more seasonal produce. So by introducing a seasonal menu not only reduces your costs of food and importing fees it also means you can use more local produce (45% of buyers bought local produce) & utilize what’s in season (and it keeps your menu new and exciting, bonus points!).
• Advertise your environmental efforts – making it known you use the Sensee System or that you use environmentally friendly alternatives. 34% of people prefer & purchase from a brand that has environmentally friendly ethical practices and values.

So start introducing digital food safety technology into your commercial kitchen and show your customers how much you value sustainability.�