For many food and drink businesses, food waste is an inevitable and often unavoidable part of the day-to-day business, but it can also be a real financial burden. Not only do wasted raw materials and ingredients mean wasted money, their subsequent disposal has associated waste management costs.
What’s more, food waste is biodegradable, releasing greenhouse gases (carbon emissions) when sent to a landfill, so waste management costs will include Landfill Tax. This Tax is currently at £48/tonne and is set to increase by £8/year until 2014/15.
A recent study estimated the amount of food waste thrown away by different sized restaurants & bars (as defined by number of employees).
The figures below show the average number of ‘euro binfuls’ per week of food waste that could be avoided by restaurants and pubs and the associated annual savings in avoided landfill tax.
Food Waste in Restaurants
|
Number of Employees (FTE) |
Number of 1,100 litre bins per week |
Weight of food waste per year (tonnes) |
Associated carbon emission per annum (t CO2 e) |
Landfill Tax per annum (at 2010 rate) |
|
1-4 |
0.5 |
5.4 |
2.0 |
£257 |
|
5-10 |
0.7 |
7.9 |
2.9 |
£380 |
|
11-24 |
2.5 |
29 |
10.6 |
£1,394 |
|
25-49 |
3.5 |
40 |
14.6 |
£1,918 |
Food Waste in Bars
|
Number of Employees (FTE) |
Number of 1,100 litre bins per week |
Weight of food waste per year (tonnes) |
Associated carbon emission per annum (t CO2 e) |
Landfill Tax per annum (at 2010 rate) |
|
1-4 |
0.5 |
5.6 |
2.0 |
£268 |
|
5-10 |
0.5 |
5.2 |
1.9 |
£251 |
|
11-24 |
1.2 |
13.8 |
5.0 |
£661 |
|
25-49 |
1.6 |
17.8 |
6.5 |
£853 |
Where possible, it’s best to avoid producing waste in the first place, as this also saves the cost of procuring and disposing of the wasted materials, both in terms of money and carbon emissions.
Nevertheless, it is possible to cut costs and carbon emissions from unavoidable food waste by turning it into renewable energy or compost. Check out our directory of food waste collections to find opportunities in your area for diverting your food waste away from landfill and cutting your costs and carbon footprint.
Click here to use the Sustainable Food & Drink Food Waste Map.
