Between field and plate, around 2.8 million tons of food waste are produced in Switzerland every year. As food production is responsible for a third of the environmental impact, it is up to all of us to minimize this figure. By reducing food waste and unnecessarily consumed resources, we can all make a significant contribution to a sustainable food system. For this reason, the SV Group has been taking numerous measures to prevent food waste since 2006.
The SV Group is working in several areas to reduce food waste.
Scroll to the right to discover the measures to prevent food waste.
In the kitchens, we are increasingly relying on data-based supply planning in order to better estimate the quantities required. Purchasing is carefully coordinated with supply planning. Food is stored correctly so that it lasts longer. We also make sure that as little food waste as possible is produced during processing. At the buffets, it is also important to correctly estimate the quantities required and adapt the crockery to demand.
In our restaurants, most of the food waste is produced on the guests' plates. To avoid leftovers on the plates as far as possible, our employees are trained to prepare the right portion sizes. Our guests have the opportunity to actively communicate with our employees and adjust portion sizes. In many establishments, it is possible to get seconds. At the buffet, it is up to our guests to choose the right portion size for them. However, we can make our guests aware of the issue again with communication materials.
Hygienically packaged food that is left over, for example sandwiches, is sold in the evening or the next day at a lower price. These offers are marked with the "Save food, fight waste" logo. All food that we cannot recycle and have to dispose of is processed into biogas by our waste disposal partner Recycling Energie AG. We also have used frying oil collected by Recycling Energie AG. This is processed into biodiesel.
Food waste has been systematically recorded annually in all SV restaurants since 2006. Thanks to measurement and the implementation of a large number of measures, food waste has been reduced by 40% since 2006. Today, an average of 33 g of food waste is still produced per meal.
Around 28% of Swiss food waste is produced in private households. It is therefore also important to treat food with respect in private households. Here, too, good planning, correct storage and complete recycling are usually important. You can find lots of helpful tips here: https://savefood.ch/de/das-kannst-du-tun.html
And many helpful facts about food waste can be found here: https://foodwaste.ch/was-ist-food-waste/
You can find out more about our activities against food waste in the current Sustainability Progress Report.