Necessary Steps
- Measure food waste generation regularly and identify the causes of food waste (for more details, see Measuring food waste in school canteens).
- Adjust the menu or recipes according to the leftover food.
- Order the right amount of food products and use the First-In-First-Out system for food storage; place items with the soonest best-before or use-by dates at the front of the storage space, and put food items with the furthest dates at the back.
- Store food under proper conditions (e.g. frozen, chilled, etc.).
- Prepare and serve the right amount of food; use self-serving or offer smaller portions with the option to add.
- Use leftover food items during another meal service in compliance with food safety requirements.
- Redistribute surplus food; e.g. in cooperation with a food bank.
- Collect biowaste in a separate container .
More Issues To Consider
To achieve the best results in reducing food waste, an integrated approach must be taken:
- The whole school, i.e. children, teachers, and school management, should be involved (see Teachers tackling food waste).
- Campaigns, competitions and other hands-on activities can be organised (see Campaigning and cooking for awareness raising).
- Food waste issues should be considered when tendering for the catering service (see Procurement criteria to reduce food waste).
