It's check-out time for food waste: strengthening environmental and economic performance in hospitality

From quick breakfast waffles to lavish steak dinners, U.S. hotels serve millions of tons of food every year. A significant portion of this food, however, ends up in the trash, contributing to growing environmental concerns while costing hotels and resorts millions of dollars.

Meanwhile, the need for hotels to reduce these losses is becoming ever more urgent: new waste-reducing regulations are on the way; visitors increasingly prioritize sustainability; and the economic burden of food waste continues to grow. 

But, as the saying goes, “You can’t manage what you don’t measure.” In this case, the issue is that measuring food waste can be a complex endeavor and hotels face significant challenges doing so. 

Our message is simple: Wasted food does more than harm the environment and undermine sustainability goals; it's bad business.

The need for these efforts has never been more compelling. Just consider the scope of the issue: food waste contributes 8–10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and hotels alone account for roughly 3% of global food waste. Three percent may not sound like a lot, but it adds up quickly. Even a 20% reduction in hotel food waste across the globe could prevent an estimated 5.22 million tons of food waste each year.

Reducing this waste not only keeps food out of landfills and lowers greenhouse gas emissions, it also supports broader sustainability goals, decreasing demand for land, water, and energy. This, in turn, helps keep water clean and reduces stress on natural habitats, improving biodiversity protection.

But the hospitality industry has additional reasons to sit up and pay attention: Food waste accounts for approximately 8% of total food costs in hotels, undermining their economic sustainability. On the other hand, evidence from hospitality and food-service pilot studies indicates that, in many cases, these losses can be quickly cut. By simply measuring and managing food waste, case studies have found that hotels can reduce 40% of their waste in six months. Even more impressive: For every $1 invested in these efforts, hotels pocket, on average, a $7 return.

While there is no doubt that hotels stand to profit from reducing food waste, we need to be thoughtful about how we get there. Newly aggregated data in our study underlines the fact that food waste patterns vary dramatically throughout the industry. For example, we found that resorts generate 75% more food waste than non-resort hotels.

The takeaway? A one-size-fits-all food waste solution won’t work across the sector. To be successful, we need to tailor waste management and reduction plans according to hotels’ size, location, and business model.