Events Management Knowledge
Provided by London Metropolitan University
LONDON METROPOLITAN BUSINESS SCHOOL (LMBS) AND THE INSTITUTE OF HOSPITALITY SHOWCASE TACKLING FOOD WASTE IN THE UK
London Metropolitan Business School and the Institute of Hospitality hosted an event showcasing initiatives which are helping universities and the hospitality sector to tackle the UK’s food waste mountain.
The event organiser, Ioannis Pantelidis, a Senior Lecturer in Hospitality and Tourism Management at London Metropolitan University said:
‘This is a particular hot topic which goes hand in hand with the CO2 emissions reduction initiatives. The hospitality industry will need to be at the forefront of wastage reduction and energy conservation not only because of the new taxation but also because reduction of waste and CO2 can mean lower energy bills and as such the possibility for higher profit margins. It is always positive to see our students mingling with industry professionals discussing these important issues and we are always grateful to the Institute of Hospitality for supporting this event with guest speakers.’
Addressing the audience made up of London IoH members, university sustainability managers, and London Met hospitality and catering students, Fiona Serrecchia of waste management and recycling company Cawleys, outlined some horrifying statistics:
* In the UK alone a staggering twenty million tonnes of food waste is thrown away each year. Just over one third of this food waste is generated by householder;
* the remainder represents waste from retailers, food manufacturers and the hospitality sector (WRAP data 2009).
* More than three quarters of food waste goes straight to landfill sites where it decomposes and emits harmful greenhouse gases.
Serrecchia outlined the more environmentally friendly alternatives to landfill which are now available to organisations, including biogas/anaerobic digestion, in-vessel composting, rendering plants and animal feed merchants and waste to energy plants.
Addressing the audience, Serrecchia said: ‘Anaerobic Digestion, a process hailed as the future for food waste recycling in the UK, provides a fabulous solution to food waste – instead of sending food waste to landfill where it produces methane, a climate-change gas twenty-two times more powerful than carbon dioxide, it is turned into fertiliser returned back to the land, and methane converted to electricity. As a sustainable solution it is unbeatable’.
Eamon Cole, Chairman of the Institute of Hospitality concluded the day’s proceeding by outlining some of the London Branch’s activities, giving a personal account of what it means to be a member of the Institute.