Hotel sector’s food sourcing and preparation ‘unsustainable’

The hospitality sector could cut its food-related carbon emissions by 30% by 2030 by reducing hotel food waste.

That is according to a World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance (WSHA) and Iberostar White Paper, published last month, which describes the way hotels source and prepare food today as “unsustainable”.

The report, Decarbonising Hotel Food Systems, notes: “Today’s food systems are responsible for one quarter of all global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and are depleting biodiversity at an alarming rate . . . [and] hotels have a disproportionate impact relative to the number of meals they serve.”

Hotels serve less than 0.5% of all meals but contribute 1% of food-related emissions and 3% of food waste globally, “because of the higher emissions intensity of hotel meals, high rates of food waste and inefficient use of resources”.

A typical hotel meal produces “three times higher” emissions than a meal at home, with the report noting: “This outsize contribution is driven by a business model that requires hotels to offer a wide range of food . . . and minimise the risk of running out” as well as high consumption of emissions-intensive ingredients like meat.

It suggests: “It is a model bound to lead to over-ordering and overpreparing.”

The paper warns current practices “threaten the viability” of the food system and argues: “Making hotel food systems sustainable is an urgent priority.”

Action on sustainable sourcing is “most urgent”, the report argues, as this “could yield more than half the total potential reduction in emissions”.

Food sourcing accounts for 62% of hotel food emissions, with the remainder due to food waste, energy use in kitchens and plastic packaging.

More than 20% of the food bought by hotels is thrown away, with hotels buying and preparing more food than necessary to avoid customer dissatisfaction, and rates of food waste “highest in hotels with several restaurants that offer all-inclusive packages and/or buffets”.

The paper proposes a pathway to reducing emissions from hotel food by 30% by 2030, cutting up to 70 million tonnes of CO2 a year, noting “the actions required are not necessarily technologically complex but do require behaviour changes”.

It suggests the industry “has an important role to play in transforming food systems” more widely, arguing: “As major purchasers of food and providers of meals, hotels have the power to alter patterns of food production and consumption.”

‘More at stake than projecting a green image’

The Decarbonising Hotel Food Systems white paper explains how hotel food systems operate today, the risks in current practices and the steps hotels can take to transform their food systems.

It notes: “Today’s hotel food systems . . . impose substantial hidden costs on the environment and communities in the form of greenhouse gas emissions, food waste and adverse effects on nature and human health. Cutting these costs is a business necessity.

“Unsustainable practices are no longer an option. Hotels that fail to adapt risk falling behind.”

The white paper examines food sourcing, food waste, kitchen operations and plastic food packaging, proposing action and providing case studies in each area.

World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance chief executive Glenn Mandziuk hailed it as “a gamechanger” and a “call to action” for the industry, with Iberostar global sustainability director Erika Harms adding: “Rethinking food in our industry is crucial.”

The paper suggests: “There is much more at stake than projecting a green image. Failing to future-proof its food supply could threaten a hotel business’s continuity.

“Multiple countries are seeing a backlash against tourism where it pushes up prices and puts local resources like water under strain. This is increasing pressure on hotels to act in a way that is responsible.”

WSHA members include the Choice, Marriott, Hilton, IHG, Hyatt, BWH [Best Western) and Radisson hotel groups, operating more than 55,000 hotels.

The paper was produced jointly by the WHSA, Iberostar, the Sustainable Markets Initiative and consultancy Systemiq. It’s available from sustainablehospitalityalliance.org