Tackling Food Waste as a Sector: Embracing Sustainable Consumers and Navigating New Regulations

Food waste costs Australia $36.6b annually and action in the QSR sector will be crucial to reduction efforts

This article is part of a 3-part series, ‘Tackling Food Waste as a Sector,’ highlighting key factors emerging from the existing literature on food waste in QSRs. This article focuses on ‘sustainability’, with the following articles focusing on ‘costs of food waste’ and ‘technologies to address food waste’.

Food waste costs Australia $36.6b annually and contributes to 3% of the nation's greenhouse gas emissions. This waste, which could fill the Melbourne Cricket Ground over ten times, presents significant financial and environmental challenges for QSRs. Reducing food waste can mitigate these issues, cut costs, appeal to eco-conscious consumers, and comply with incoming legislation.

To help address this, the End Food Waste Collaborative Research Centre (EFW CRC) is developing a Sector Action Plan for the QSR sector. This plan aims to provide businesses with tools to implement operational changes and influence policy. This project will involve sharing findings and working with stakeholders to find solutions to industry-specific food waste challenges. Stakeholders can participate in interviews, site visits, and surveys. More information on participation is available below.

This sector action plan will help QSR businesses address the changing food waste landscape. Food waste and sustainability are inextricably linked. With sustainability becoming a focus for both consumers and governments, QSRs need to be proactive.

Changing Consumer Preferences

Consumer sentiment around the impact of food waste has changed significantly. Consumers are increasingly aware of its environmental and economic impacts, driving demand for more sustainable practices across the foodservice industry. Within the QSR sector, environmental and sustainability-focused practices from businesses are expected to influence consumer patterns in the future.

Jefferey Clark of the National Restaurant Association suggests that consumers are ‘much more sophisticated and engaged’ now on these issues. He also suggests they will be demanding action to address food waste ‘if they haven’t already’.

This shift is pressuring businesses to adopt more sustainable practices, reduce waste, and share these wins with customers. Implementing strategies such as discounting and donating surplus food, improving forecasting, and implementing food waste recycling are actions that can help address these changing preferences. Further understanding of how to adjust food waste practices to meet consumer expectations is something that the Sector Action Plan will look to address.

Impending Regulatory Changes

Governments, both state and federal, are looking to enforce stricter regulations to compel businesses to reduce food waste. One significant regulatory change includes impending mandates for source separation of organic waste in New South Wales (NSW) by 2025 for some businesses.

This mandate, if passed into law in its current form, will require businesses such as QSRs to separate organic waste from other types of waste, thus diverting it from landfills. There will be a range of contextual challenges for each QSR business to adapt to these changes. These may range from physical barriers such as space, to managerial challenges such as corporate-to-franchisee relationships. QSRs should be proactive and look to firstly reduce the amount of food waste generated initially but also implement organics recycling at their sites. Compliance with such regulations will not only help reduce food waste but also enhance the sustainability credentials of QSR businesses.

Mandatory climate reporting for QSRs of a certain size will also be required from potentially 2025 onwards. Legislation being considered by the Australian government looks to require businesses to disclose their sustainability practices and outcomes. Improving how food waste is managed and reduced is a significant opportunity for QSR businesses, and for this reason, should drive action in the sector.

Conclusion

The QSR sector must act swiftly to address food waste, both to meet consumer demand for sustainability and to comply with evolving regulatory frameworks. The collaboration facilitated by the EFW CRC's Sector Action Plan offers a space and place where QSR businesses can collaborate on actions to tackle this issue effectively as a sector.

By participating in research, workshops, and other initiatives, QSR businesses can develop and implement strategies to reduce food waste, lower costs, and minimize their environmental footprint.

The insights shared in this article are from the End Food Waste Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) QSR Sector Action Plan research project. This research will develop a QSR sector-wide action plan of strategies that can help the Australian QSR industry to reduce food waste. Research to inform this sector action plan is ongoing. We invite QSR industry professionals to contribute by sharing their experiences and insights, for the benefit of the entire sector.

To participate in a survey as part of this research please click here. For further information on how to participate please e-mail Dr Li Ping Thong (Lead Chief Investigator).