Wildfire Restaurant in Narooma has reduced its food waste by a whopping 32 kilograms per week, participating in Eurobodalla Council's Your Business is Food program.
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Part of the NSW Environment Protection Authority's (EPA) Love Food Hate Waste program, Your Business is Food is designed to help businesses waste less food and improve profits.
As a participant of the program, Wildfire Restaurant worked with a Eurobodalla Council project officer to understand the source of the business' food waste and develop a plan to reduce it.
In addition to undertaking a change in operations, Wildfire Restaurant engaged its staff and customers with resources which enable them to join the fight against food waste.
Wildfire Restaurant owner Rosh Shrestha said Eurobodalla Council's Your Business is Food program has helped his business to implement small actions that have had huge effects.
"We conducted a food waste review to track and measure where our food waste was coming from," Mr Shrestha said.
"We've implemented some food waste avoidance initiatives like reminding customers they can choose to remove unwanted items, like chips or salad, from meals.
"We've also started providing reusable containers for uneaten food and we've tailored specific parts of our menu to minimise food waste."
The Australian government's latest research into food waste has found that approximately $20 billion worth of food is disposed of annually.
In NSW, that equates to an estimated $73 per week or $3800 a year for the average household.
Food waste is generated across all areas of a business. It occurs at purchasing, storage, preparation, and through leftovers on customers' plates.
However, what is wasted is not just food - it's also staff time and disposal costs.
When you sign-up for the program, a Council project officer will help you:
- to do a food waste review of your business
- develop an action plan
- celebrate success.
To get involved, visit Council's website www.esc.nsw.gov.au and search for 'love food' or contact the Your Business is Food co-ordinator Rebecca Jones on 0416 597 095 or rebecca@sustainmeconsulting.com.au
The Love Food Hate Waste grants have been awarded under the NSW EPA's Organics Infrastructure Fund, which forms part of the Waste Less, Recycle More initiative, funded from the waste levy.
