Collective catering facing the energy crisis

With rising electricity and gas prices, the energy crisis is having a lasting impact on our consumption patterns; this is also true for contract catering, which is already heavily impacted by rising food prices.

Between implementing eco-gestures, better management or longer-term projects, there are ways to mitigate both your environmental impact, but also relieve your budget in these times of energy crisis.

Actions to take to address the energy crisis in collective catering

While the subject is on everyone's lips, the energy crisis is an opportunity to take effective actions within your collective restaurant to limit its impact on the budget. It is also an opportunity to learn effective eco-actions and improve the comfort of your guests.

Engage your employees with simple, but effective eco-actions

This is a subject that concerns us all and requires raising awareness among all your employees by implementing simple eco-actions within your collective restaurant.

Here are, for example, some notions to take into account:

• The cooking temperature: by lowering the temperature of the ovens or cooking water by 5 or 10 degrees, you will considerably lower your bill;
• The temperature in the structures: by lowering it by a few degrees, you will reduce your heating bill;
• Water: lower the pressure of the faucets or improve the management of water to avoid waste.

The actors of the collective catering must be made aware of these simple yet effective methods. It is also not futile to inform consumers in order to limit waste, reduce the use of water and electricity.

The bills will increase, but it is possible to reduce the impact to withstand this energy crisis.

Renovate your building, maintain or change your equipment for a long-term impact

Waiting for the kitchens of tomorrow that will be thought to limit our energy consumption, you have to adapt according to your equipment and your building stock.

To lead an effective and sustainable transition, the best solution obviously remains to invest in:

• The renovation of buildings considered as energy sieves. This involves insulating structures and changing old windows to avoid excessive heating or air conditioning. As for housing, fighting against overconsumption goes through a well-insulated building;
• The change of equipment: today, there are alternatives to soften your bills. For example, lighting with LEDs or investing in the latest generation of heating equipment.
• The maintenance of equipment: maintenance can also be an interesting alternative, we know that well-maintained equipment will be more efficient and therefore likely to consume less.

Each company restaurant is unique, each case must be studied differently and the actions depend on your budget. But there is no doubt that the renovation or change of equipment represents an impactful investment in the long term.

Energy optimizers, to significantly reduce your consumption

One of the most beneficial solutions in the long term is to bet on energy optimizers. Solar panels, replacing combustion engine vehicles with electric or hybrid alternatives or changing cooking methods represent ways that are called energy optimizers.

It is estimated that it is possible to reduce energy consumption by 40% in the context of collective catering. The kitchen of the future will tend towards greater sobriety, and R&D and innovations on this subject are already at work.