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Restaurants and Food Service

Certification Criteria     Certified Businesses      

PACE staff worked with Boulder County restaurants to develop an assistance and certification program specific to the restaurant industry. The program is designed to provide information to restaurants that will help them improve their operations, reduce waste and energy use, and continue meeting food service quality standards.

Restaurants that are committed to waste reduction and recycling will now receive recognition for their efforts. PACE will recognize businesses that meet the certification criteria through direct mail, periodic ads, press releases identifying newly certified businesses, a framed certificate and window decal.

The key to a successful program is training and involving employees. Inform staff of the purchasing, handling, recycling, and maintenance procedures your business uses to reduce waste. Include staff in the decision-making process to ensure participation to reduce waste. This will result in higher productivity, better morale, and cost savings.

Purchasing
	Let suppliers know you are serious about reducing waste. Ask them to take back shipping boxes for reuse, or use reusable containers
	Buy in bulk when sales volume and storage space allow. Examples: - shelf-stable food supplies - buy meats in bulk or uncut form and cut to size whenever the yield is greater than or equal to that of pre-portioned meats. - buy shelled, pasteurized eggs in bulk if use is 3 or more cases per week (up to 30% of the white stays in the shell with manually shelled raw eggs)
	Serve beverages from a beverage gun or dispenser, and buy bar mixes in concentrate form.
	Use health department approved, refillable condiment dispensers or bottles instead of individual packets (salt/pepper, sugar, catsup, etc.).
	Buy items like pickles, mayonnaise, and salad dressings in plastic-lined cardboard, Cry-o-vac, or foil pouches instead of hard plastic pails or buckets, unless buckets are reusable
	Find reusable alternatives to disposable products such as coasters, ashtrays, and placemats.
Product Handling and Storage
	Check deliveries carefully for rotten or damaged product, and return any substandard product. Contents of dented cans may not be safe to eat.
	Have a system for rotating stock to use older stock first ("first in, first out"), and arrange storage areas to provide easy product access and labeling.
	Clean coolers and freezers regularly to ensure that food has not fallen behind shelving and spoiled
	Store raw vegetables, freezer products, and other perishables in reusable airtight containers to prevent unnecessary dehydration, freezer burn, and spoilage.
	Revitalize vegetables that have wilted by trimming off the bottom part of the stalk and immersing in warm water (100o F) for 15 to 20 minutes.
Returnable Bottles Save Money Several local restaurants are saving money and waste by getting beer in returnable bottles when available. Although a deposit is required, the net cost for the beer is less than with disposables. Employee training is key for success in making sure returnables are kept separate from other bottles.
Food Preparation and Storage
	Whenever possible, prepare foods to order.
	Regularly compare production levels to customer demand to avoid over-prepping and unnecessary waste. Adjust portion size if meals are consistently returned unfinished.
	Find other uses for leftover food (e.g. stale bread for croutons or bread pudding, meat and vegetable trimmings for soup stock).
	Practice health department approved techniques for keeping hot and cold food stored at the proper temperatures to minimize waste due to spoilage.
	Cool hot foods in an ice bath before refrigerating to get them to the proper temperature and keep the cooler from working overtime.
Housekeeping
	Do not dump mop water or wash floor mats or kitchen equipment outside. Dump mop water down a drain connected to the sewer. This is required by the food code. Take floor mats to a local car wash for cleaning.
	Clean and service equipment regularly to keep it in good working order and reduce energy costs.
	Clean fryers and filter the oil daily. Built-up carbon deposits on the bottom of the fryer act as an insulator that forces the fryer to heat longer, causing oil to break down sooner.