HotelsThere are solid business reasons for adopting an environmental approach in hotels, not the least of which is the fact that environmental considerations are becoming increasingly important for guests. In addition to other energy efficient conservation efforts such as lighting improvements and water savings measures, hotels are responding to guest demands to reduce and recycle (Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Quarterly 1993). Some of the current waste reduction strategies include:
RestaurantsDispenser amenities in place of single-use disposable bottles of hair products and individual bars of soap in guest rooms. Newspaper on request only. Reusable laundry baskets. Many hotels with laundry and dry cleaning services are placing guest items in decorated baskets rather than hanging them on wire hangers and covering them with plastic. Guests simply leave the basket in the room to be returned to the hotel laundry. Elimination of plastic or paper wrapping on drinking glasses in guest rooms. Elimination of paper doilies in guest rooms. Optional linen programs that allow the guest to opt not to have their bed linens and towels changed daily. The National Restaurant Association, formed in 1990, is exploring options for reducing restaurant waste. With local and state governments pressuring restaurants to comply with often stringent recycling regulations, restaurateurs now face the double challenge of creating favorable customer perceptions by addressing environmental concerns, and following management's direction to avoid increased costs (Textile Rental 1993). Despite some concern about how to pay for waste reduction programs, "green is in" says Margot Ross, chairperson for the National Restaurant Association. "It's a more powerful slogan today than 'Made in the USA', even though it is now more than six years since the 20th anniversary of Earth Day" (Textile Rental 1993).
Simple reduction measures can often have substantial impact on waste quantities. Some examples of waste reduction efforts in national restaurant chains include:
McDonald's restaurant has leaped, relatively unsung, into the source reduction arena as a way to cut costs. In the past 10 years, McDonald's has eliminated nearly 12 million pounds (6000 tons) of excess packaging from its business (Westerman 1991).Red Lobster is now requiring all of its locations to use linen napkins and placemats in place of paper. This is saving 40,000 tress and removing 47 million pounds of paper from the restuarant's waste stream annually (Nations Restaurant News 1995). Wendy's took the ink out of its napkins and now saves 56,000 pounds of waste every year. Changes in packaging of pickles, mustard and mayonnaise removed an additional one-million pounds of waste. Switching from Kid's meal boxes to bags, eliminated another 1.4 million pounds of waste. Ketchup dispensers in restaurants reduced individual packaging waste (Wendy's corporate pamphlet 1996). Since some of the nation's largest beverage companies are now restaurant owners, one of the best things their industry can do for recycling is set an example. At PepsiCo's Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and KFC restaurants, aggressive packaging recycling, source reduction and "buy recycled" programsare underway. Recently all three restaurants cut paper usage by reducing the size of customer napkins and checks. Other strategies included dispensing beer from an on-tap stsyem rather than bottles, and replacing disposable coffee filters with reusable wire filters (Stack 1996). McDonalds switched from bags to cartons for its hash browns. The change resulted in a 74% decrease in paper usage, and kept 3.4 million pounds of material from becoming waste. McDonalds also imlemented a nationwide program, which officials say will reduce its waste generated by one million pounds (500 tons). The reduction comes from changing the weight of thepaper used to wrap sandwhiches. Another project to reduce waste involved reducing the size of napkins by one inch (Egan 1996). Nationally, more and more restaurants are turning to waste reduction and recycling to take the bulk out of their garbage. Largequantities of heavy items such as food waste, glass and cardboard account for the majority of their waste. Cardboard is a focus because generally everything that is delivered to a restaurant (both full-service and quick-service restaurants) is packaged in a cardboard box (Rabasca 1993).
Food waste is also attracting a lot of interest because it is one of the largest waste generation categories. Food waste once landfilled is now being recovered in some cities and used as a livestock feed product. Source-separated food waste is collected, processed and fed to pigs. Food waste is collected from kitchens in specially marked bins and is placed in an outside bin for pick up. Walt Disney World Resort in Florida for example, collects over 30 tons of food waste per day in the theme park and hotel restaurants and snack bars. The ability to recycle food waste has been instrumental in ensuring Disney maintains or exceeds its 30% waste reduction goal (Wagner 1995).