10 Practical Tips to Reduce Food Waste in Your Restaurant

According to Eurostat, EU restaurants and food services generate roughly 7 million tonnes of food waste per year — about 14 kg per person. That's 11% of the EU's total food waste.

The good news: research by Champions 12.3 and WRAP, covering 114 restaurants across 12 countries, found that restaurants saved $7 for every $1 invested in waste reduction. Over 75% recouped their investment within the first year, and the average kitchen cut waste by 26% within 12 months.

Here are 10 things you can start doing this week.

1. Do a Waste Audit First

Before you fix anything, spend one week measuring what you throw away. Keep a simple log:

After one week, you'll know exactly where your waste comes from. Most kitchens find that expiry waste and over-preparation are the two biggest drivers.

2. Switch from FIFO to FEFO

Most kitchens use FIFO — First In, First Out. But FIFO assumes that items received first expire first. That's not always true.

FEFO (First Expired, First Out) prioritises items by actual expiry date, not arrival date. It's a simple mental shift: instead of "use the oldest delivery first," think "use whatever expires soonest."

Label every batch with its expiry date. Put the earliest-expiring items at the front of the shelf. Train staff to always grab from the front.

3. Run a Daily 5-Minute Expiry Check

Every morning, before service, spend 5 minutes scanning your fridges for items expiring within 1–3 days. Write them on a whiteboard in the kitchen.

These become your priority ingredients for the day:

• Work them into the daily special
• Use them for staff meals
• Prep them into sauces, stocks, or marinades that extend shelf life

Five minutes of checking prevents hours of waste.

4. Right-Size Your Portions

Plate waste — food that customers leave uneaten — is a significant contributor to total restaurant waste. The most common cause? Portions that are too large.

Track plate returns for a week. If the same dish consistently comes back half-eaten, the portion is too big. Reducing it by 15–20% saves food, saves money, and most customers won't notice (or they'll appreciate it).

Offering two portion sizes (regular and large) is another option that some restaurants find effective.

5. Prep in Batches, Not in Bulk

Over-prepping "just in case" is one of the biggest waste drivers in kitchens. The fix: prep in smaller, more frequent batches.

Instead of prepping all your vegetables for the entire day at 8 AM, prep for lunch service first. Assess demand at 2 PM and prep the remainder for dinner.

Yes, it means prepping twice. But the ingredients you don't prep don't get wasted. For high-cost items like proteins and dairy, this alone can save hundreds of euros per month.

6. Organise Storage by Expiry Date

Physical organisation matters more than most people think. Set up your fridges and dry storage so that:

• Newest items go to the back (or top shelf)
• Oldest / earliest-expiring items go to the front (or eye level)
• Every container is labelled with item name and expiry date

When a cook reaches for an ingredient during the rush, they'll grab whatever is most accessible. Make sure that's always the item that needs to be used first.

7. Shrink Your Menu (Strategically)

A smaller menu means fewer unique ingredients, which means:

• Less variety sitting in your fridge
• Higher turnover per ingredient
• Lower chance of items expiring unused

You don't need to gut your menu. Start by identifying ingredients that appear in only one dish. Can that dish be modified to use an ingredient you already stock? Can it be rotated as a weekly special instead of a permanent item?

Every ingredient that serves multiple dishes is an ingredient that's less likely to expire.

8. Train Every Team Member — Not Just the Chef

Food waste prevention fails when only the head chef cares. Every person who touches food needs to understand the basics:

• Receiving staff: Check expiry dates on delivery. Reject items with less shelf life than agreed.
• Storage staff: Place items by expiry date, not convenience.
• Prep cooks: Check the priority board before prepping. Use near-expiry items first.
• Line cooks: Follow portioning standards consistently.
• Front of house: Note plate waste patterns and report back.

A 15-minute training session once a month keeps everyone aligned.

9. Build Relationships with Donation Partners

Food that's approaching expiry but still safe to eat doesn't have to be wasted. Connect with a local food bank, shelter, or community fridge.

In many EU countries, food donation is actively supported by law:

• France: The Garot Law requires larger food businesses to sign donation agreements with charities
• Italy: The Gadda Law (Legge 166/2016) offers municipal waste tax reductions for businesses that donate surplus
• Spain: Ley 1/2025 establishes a hierarchy where human consumption (including donation) is the top priority

Even where it's not legally required, donating surplus food is good practice, good PR, and often tax-advantageous.

10. Track Everything Digitally

The tips above all work better when you can see the data. Tracking expiry dates, consumption patterns, and waste volumes over time lets you:

• Spot recurring waste patterns (e.g., "we always waste mushrooms on Mondays")
• Measure whether your changes are actually working
• Build the compliance records that EU regulations increasingly require

Tools like VivaShelf automate expiry tracking and FEFO stock rotation, but even a simple digital log beats paper or memory.

The 30-Day Challenge

You don't need to implement all 10 tips at once. Here's a realistic timeline:

The Champions 12.3 research found that restaurants reduced kitchen food waste by 26% on average within 12 months — with the majority seeing returns from the first year.

Every Kilogram Counts

Food waste is the rare business problem where doing the right thing and saving money are the same action. Less waste means lower costs, fresher food for customers, and a smaller environmental footprint.

Start with one tip this week. Measure the result. Then add another. Small, consistent improvements compound fast.

Start tracking your inventory for free