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III. Storing of products
•
Limit your stocks: check it every day in order to adjust as much as possible your supplies to the expected
needs, and taking into account the period of the year;
•
When possible, favour smaller packaging and avoid pre-production, as this will give flexibility in case of
fluctuating demand;
•
Apply the FIFO (First In First Out) and FEFO (First Expired First Out) principles to avoid wastes and
losses;
•
Be careful with sensitive products (e.g. fruits, vegetables, etc.). Avoid damaging packaging, as it
diminishes shelf-life;
•
Favour under-vacuum storage to extend shelf-life. Develop deep-freezing to better manage stocks.
Cook & Chill techniques also allow to extend shelf-life;
•
Always strictly respect the cold chain and strictly respect locally applicable hygiene norms and
standards. Strictly respect products’ shelf-life;
•
Label everything in your cold storage room, to ensure that you know every product/ingredient/dish, as
well as their shelf-life/expiry date. This will reduce losses;
IV. Cooking and kitchen tips
•
Favour flavours over quantities;
•
Calculate precisely quantities (indicate weight of ingredients in recipes to be used) and adjust portions
to customers’ demands;
•
A good mise-en-place is critical: many food losses/waste are the result of an inadequate mise-en-
place. It must be tailored to fit the customers’ needs and avoid losses;
•
Avoid un-necessary trimmings, so as to ensure that dishes are entirely eaten;
•
When possible, try to handle/cook the whole gross product to have less losses;
•
Use different cooking techniques for the same vegetable, in order to include it in different forms in
different dishes. Use leftovers for preparing bouillon, soups, etc.;
•
Use the right equipment (e.g. some peelers produce lighter peels);
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European hospitality industry guidelines to reduce food waste and recommendations to manage food donations