30 quick wins for Greater Manchester hospitality businesses ready to become greener
- Tuesday, October 22, 2024
- Posted By The Growth Company
All business owners know that becoming greener is the future; it pleases customers, will help you save money on energy bills and will prepare you for any inevitable changes in legislation, attitudes and more. However, when you’re running a busy restaurant, bar or hotel it’s not always the priority. The hospitality sector has taken a huge hit in recent years and many businesses are now trying to stay afloat in a tough economic period. Plus, the fast and intense nature of the industry often means you don’t have time to sit and consider long-term plans, or renting a space limits what you can achieve.
We understand, but we think it’s vital that Greater Manchester’s hospitality businesses adapt and prepare for the future.
So, the Bee Net Zero partnership has rounded up some quick wins for our region’s hospitality businesses to help them save money, reduce waste and lessen their impact on the planet.
Remember, there will be more easy wins tailored to your business. The best thing you can do is speak to your team and ask for more ideas that link specifically to your site, your practices and your products.
1. Identify when and where you’re using energy
Take a look at your business’s energy data to see when and where your energy is used so that you can identify any areas to reduce. It’s a legal requirement for energy suppliers to share this data with you if you ask, and it could identify huge opportunities to save money just by turning off appliances when they’re not in use.
2. Invest in timers and sensors
Consider purchasing electric timers and sensors so your electrical appliances only run when needed, reducing your energy bill. Obviously, this won’t work for fridges or freezers with perishables but it could work well for wine and beer fridges to help you save money within seconds. The average payback for these readily available (and affordable) timers means you should get your money back within two weeks
3. Install LED lighting
Upgrade to LED lighting where possible or switch to a more energy-efficient bulb. You can also add sensors to areas like store cupboards where light won’t be needed at all times and you could reduce the amount of lighting in spaces like dining areas to minimise the energy needed.
4. Update your procedures
Make clear and updated procedures for the start and end of the day so that every single team member knows which electrical appliances should be switched off and when. Then, everyone should be on the same page and you will avoid leaving unnecessary devices plugged in overnight.
5. Check water pressure
Check your water pressure to reduce the supply of hot water required. High water pressure usually results in less water use, so if you’re a hotel this could be a way of pleasing guests while also cutting back on hot water usage.
6. Insulate where you can
Prioritise insulation and draft proofing like sealing doorways or building an enclosed entrance to your premises to ensure heat stays inside, this should reduce the amount you need to spend on energy.
7. Upgrade your older appliances
Upgrade your equipment to more energy-efficient alternatives from cookers to fridges and consider installing bigger-picture green tech when time and money allows, like switching to an air source heat pump instead of a gas boiler.
8. Be more flexible with dishes
Where you can offer more flexibility with menus and seasonality to ensure you can reduce food waste and source more ingredients locally. You’ll probably find many customers appreciate the variety and the chance to try something new each season.
9. Reduce portion sizes
Reduce portion sizes based on what you’re throwing away the most. For example, if you find you have more fries wasted than anything else, there would be no harm in giving each customer a few less to avoid this.
10. Measure your food waste
Count or weigh the food items don’t sell so you can measure your food waste for a few weeks to focus your waste reduction plans. Think of the food left behind as the ultimate customer feedback and adjust your menus or supplies accordingly, it will save you money in the long run rather than spending on food that is thrown away.
11. Avoid paper menus
Use a QR code or digital option for your menus to avoid printing them every time it changes. Less paper means less waste and it means it's easy to change your menu to respond to seasonal changes. This doesn’t mean all ordering has to be done online, your staff can still go and take orders and have chats with customers in person if that’s important to you.
12. Make recycling easy
Supply the right recycling bins for every section of your business including in hotel rooms and label them correctly to avoid confusion. Remember, every council uses different coloured bins and has different recycling policies so if you have staff travelling from outside of Greater Manchester, correct labelling may help them put the correct items in the correct bin.
13. Reduce, reuse, recycle
Talk to staff and suppliers about reduce, reuse, recycle. Most people don’t realise that this phrase is an order of preference and recycling should be a last resort. When you realise this, you can look for innovative solutions to reduce the amount of food you purchase or find ways to reuse them, like cooking potato skins to serve as crisps in your bar or using leftover fruit and veg as garnish.
14. Reuse half-empty toilet rolls
Hotels, it's a simple solution to avoid waste, but instead of throwing them away, reuse half-empty toilet rolls in staff toilets. Obviously, guests expect a fresh and full roll of toilet paper in their room, but that doesn’t mean any leftover has to be binned. Instead, you can simply put the half-full rolls in the staff toilets or even offer them to staff to take home and save them some money.
15. Check your stock regularly
Carry out in-depth stock checks and order your food so that the oldest products and closest use-by dates are at the front, this way you’ll use products before they spoil and won’t over-order products. It’s all about being tidy, organised and efficient.
16. Source sustainable packaging
Use sustainable packaging for deliveries and takeaways rather than single-use plastics or bad-for-the-planet alternatives. Talk to your suppliers if you’re unsure, and they’ll be sure to point you to the most eco-friendly options they have.
17. Incentivise reusable packaging
Incentivise customers to bring in their own takeaway boxes with percentage discounts or a free drink while they wait. Coffee shops accept reusable cups, so why not lead the way for reusable takeaway containers too?
18. Make carbon footprints clear
Generate a carbon footprint for menu items to spread awareness of the impact of each dish. This is similar to what the government implemented with calories, and may just make your customers think twice about ordering a high-impact dish. You can calculate carbon footprints easily online.
19. Find green alternatives
Source eco-paper alternatives for single-use cups, napkins and sauce cups like bamboo paper, recycled cotton paper, hemp paper and more. There are lots of eco-friendly options out there, so speak to your supplier and ask what they can do for you.
20. Change suppliers where necessary
If your supplier can’t help you find more environmentally friendly options, switch to a sustainable packaging supplier who can. There are so many solutions on the market, and making the change could really help the future of your business and the planet.
21. Support sustainable commutes
Encourage staff and customers to travel by public transport by sharing TfGM’s transport planning tools and discussing commutes more. You can make sure it's safer for them by pointing them to cycle training opportunities, the Walk Safe app or even encouraging travelling to and from together.
22. Low-carbon deliveries
If money will allow, upgrade to an EV for your deliveries to reduce your emissions or if not, consider outsourcing deliveries to other companies. Zedify uses zero-emission cargo bikes with 80% lower emissions than EVs. They also offer the opportunity to pay per delivery and incredible customer service.
23. Source local produce
Consider switching to a local supplier for ingredients so your products aren’t travelling quite so far. Eating locally reduces emissions because it only travels short distances and often requires less processing, handling, packaging and storage. Plus, it offers the chance to meet some great local suppliers in our area and build new relations.
24. Buy repurposed electronics
When purchasing electrical equipment consider using locally repurposed or recycled electrical equipment like tills, iPads and speakers. You can source these easily from organisations like MusicMagpie and they’re often cheaper than buying new, but also reduce emissions as they’re often sourced and sold locally rather than travelling long distances from factories and large-scale warehouses.
25. Make sustainability fun
Implement sustainability challenges like giving away a prize for sustainable commuting, playing games like energy reduction bingo and even running a meat-free cooking challenge to help embed a sustainable mindset into your teams
26. Clearly signpost
Educate your team with posters and signs to spread awareness of actions they should be taking, make it clear to every team member which setting to put the dishwashers on or to unplug speakers overnight, whatever little things will make a big difference to your hospitality business.
27. Sustainability from day one
Embed sustainability into your induction procedures. Certified courses like Carbon Literacy Training could help ensure all of your team are on the same page when it comes to thinking about the planet and saving energy, but you can also just make your processes clear from day one and show you’re serious about becoming greener.
28. Enlist staff to support
Create Sustainability Pioneers within your team to set an example to everyone else, help you maintain standards and bring new ideas to the table. You could nominate a sustainability champion, develop a green team or find whoever is most interested in sustainability within your team to help you spread the word and think more creatively.
29. Talk about sustainability more often
Embed sustainability into meetings by making it a regular topic of conversation. From discussing sustainable commuting to reducing food waste or even the correct use of the recycle bins, the more you discuss something with your teams, the quicker it will be put into practice.
30. Eco-friendly uniform
Source more ethically made uniforms for staff locally that are better quality than fast fashion alternatives. You could also consider supplying more to employees to reduce the number of washes needed, as this contributes to your emissions. Buy cheap by twice, and in clothing that’s being worn and washed every day, that has never been more true.
To find out more about the support available for your hospitality business looking to become greener, contact Green Economy or take a look at other Bee Net Zero partners. We can support businesses in all sectors at all stages of the sustainability journey.