I’ve often heaped praise on T.G.I. Friday’s for offering smaller sized meals in the “Right Portion, Right Prize” menu. Here’s where I prove I’m not on the T.G.I. payroll.
I recently came across a list of organic waste produced by all restaurants in Southeastern Massachusetts (no link, because it’s not online). Given the geographic specificity, this list is not a representative sample. Nonetheless, I’ve tallied up the totals from different chains to give an idea of restaurant food waste.
Well, T.G.I. didn’t fare so well. The three TGI’s averaged 153 tons of organic waste (mostly food). That’s more than 800 pounds per day. The next highest total for a sit-down place was Ruby Tuesday‘s 112 tons.
Of the fast food restaurants, McDonald’s “led” the way with an average of 68 tons of organic waste per year. Since the majority of this number comes from what customers leave behind, it doesn’t surprise me that, compared to sit-down restaurants, fast food outlets have less plate waste (Heck, there aren’t even plates). Fast food eateries have smaller portions and many more to-go orders (the waste is disposed of elsewhere).
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One response to “Comparing Chains’ Waste”
I would be interested to see some type of run-down of which chains are the worst, and perhaps even which dishes at which chains are the worst.
For example, at a course on waste reduction I attended in Portland, a woman who works on the city’s composting program, basically suggested that when going to P.F. Chang’s, don’t order the lettuce cups/wraps, because they essentially use only a few leaves from each head and toss the rest, because iceberg lettuce browns so quickly.
It would be interesting to have some tips on how to reduce waste when eating out–not just taking left overs home, but what type of foods might promote more waste in their preparation.