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130 • FOODSERVICE EQUIPMENT & SUPPLIES • MAY 2015 green tip At boloco, a Boston-based, regional quick-serve chain offering burritos, wraps and smoothies, Eric Kinniburgh, director of culinary, partnered with Portland-based waste management consulting frm LeanPath to conduct this type of data analysis, as well as weigh and track food waste before it hit the compost bins as an indicator of potential overpro- duction problems. After a trial run in 4 of the chain's restaurants over the span of 90 days, Kinniburgh was able to specifcally iden- tify which menu items were being thrown out the most at the end of the day. "We very quickly got visibility and were able to lower our food production waste in one loca- tion by over 34 percent in dollars," he says. From a social responsibility standpoint, the customer feedback has been even better. "Our customers appreciate our efforts and are very vocal about that." By analyzing this food waste data as well as menu sales, the chain was able to identify peak and off-peak days and hours as well as which dishes sold more or less on which days and at which times. Kinniburgh plans to implement the pro- gram in all 22 locations for even more food cost and waste hauling savings across the board. After production tracking, a next natural step for opera- tors is to tailor down the menu and cook more from scratch rather than run a huge menu with a lot of variety and many costly processed food items. "When you cook from scratch, not only do you cut down on costs, but you improve your brand reputation and cus- tomer loyalty," says Turenne. "It's about quality, not quantity." Better yet, the food's often healthier and more nutritious — another important part of sustainability these days, he adds. Cross-utilizing ingredients and buying food in season at their lowest prices also helps reduce food costs when cooking from scratch. And contrary to popular thought, scratch cooking does not always increase labor — it may actually reduce it. "If you reduce the size of your menu and production, you can reinvest some of those cost savings in more specialized labor needed to cook from scratch rather than reheat food," says Turenne. 3. TRACK UTILITIES When it comes to energy and water management, certainly operators can go for low-hanging fruit like setting up equip- ment on/off schedules and not thawing out food under running water, according to Turenne. And while replacing outdated equipment for energy-effcient models helps, that's certainly not the end of the line. For more enhanced energy and water savings on a grander scale, the frst step revolves around thoroughly tracking util- ity usage. Energy tracking, or auditing, includes two main parts: bill pay consolidation/analysis and submetering/energy management systems. "Bill pay consolidation is a frst key step in getting a handle on knowing your energy consumption," says Roger Goldstein, executive director of facilities for Panda Res- taurant Group Inc., operator of Panda Express and other brands. In this case, the chain outsources its gas, electrical and water bill management to Ecova, a total energy and sustainability management company. The frm collects all of Panda's utility bills across all brands and stores nationwide, providing the chain with spe- cifc payment dates for the three main utilities. This allows the chain to retain more capital by paying all of its bills at once, says Goldstein. This is particularly important for both commercial and noncommercial operators with multiple locations and high-volume usage. Better yet, Ecova collects and aggregates energy and water usage information so that Panda can study the results and make changes where necessary. "We are able to produce reports and scatter plots using the data that would show what the average usage is per store or per square foot, and then notice the outliers or stores with problems," Goldstein says. At that point, Panda will review the equipment at that particular store to look for any outdated, energy-draining pieces that need to be replaced. The chain will also monitor the HVAC system to ensure it's running at the proper temperature and speed, and not running all night. "We are also conducting some point-of-use metering to catch problems," says Goldstein. While many power compa- nies do this for free, he says, Panda will also install submeters on specifc pieces of equipment to determine if they are causing the extra energy drainage. The next step up has been to install hood systems with demand-controlled ventilation so the systems run only dur- ing peak times. In addition, energy management systems (EMS) monitor energy use on an ongoing basis. While individual store managers have the ability to override HVAC systems on a daily basis if a guest complains about the temperature, overnight the EMS will automatically reset the system to predesignated levels determined by corporate so they don't continue to run at too-high levels. "With this new system, now I can be on my cell phone in California and change the temperature at a store in Illinois right on the spot," says Goldstein. "Or a manager could be at home on his day off and notice a problem. It's great that commercial is fnally taking advantage of some of the same technology that has been very successful in the residential home sector." While energy management systems and demand- controlled ventilation represent some of the best new technology becoming more prevalent in the marketplace, the simple step of tracking energy use, food production and food waste can help operators open their eyes and take the next, bigger steps when it comes to sustainability. FE&S;