09.03.2022.
The guidebook “Reduce food waste, cook for your guests” was presented at the Croatian Chamber of Economy in Zagreb. The guide is a result of the namesake pilot project aimed at reducing the quantity of biowaste, especially food waste.The pilot project was launched by the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development and the Ministry of Tourism and Sports. The main goal of the project is the implementation of work methods in hotel kitchens that will lead to reducing food waste. The pilot was started in two Croatian hotels – in Osijek and Pula, and later in the Sveti Martin na Muri Resort, where measurement in under way.
Today’s presentation was aired live online with participation of around 40 hotels from across Croatia.
The head of the Department for the implementation of EU projects and coordinator of this pilot, Vesna Cetin Krnjević from the Fund, presented the results of two measurements of waste quantities at the hotels Osijek and Park Plaza Histria in Pula. “The results of the implemented methods in the two hotels show that the savings were significant, which makes us really happy and we’re eager to find out the results from the spa Sveti Martin, where the measurement is ongoing. We’re hoping that after today many other hotels will join the project, and over time other institutions with large kitchens, meaning large potential for reducing food waste.”
Aljoša Duplić, the director of the Institute for Environment and Nature at the Ministry of. Economy and Sustainable Development pointed out that tourism and large numbers of visitors were leaving a significant waste footprint, and part of it was food waste. “By reducing food waste we could achieve great results and we would achieve significant reduction in the quantity of municipal waste,” said Duplić.
During the presentation, it was announced to the participants that in May the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund would launch the Public Call for financing the purchase of machines for the prevention of biowaste (food waste) in hotels.
The guide for hotels was presented as a valuable tool for all hotels committed to reducing the quantities of biowaste, especially food waste. The guide briefly presents the proposed activities for reducing these quantities, the methodology for the measurement of waste quantities is explained, and the calculation of the financial costs related to food waste.
The closing speech was held by Jelena Šobat, the head of the Sector for special forms of tourism and analytics, innovation and sustainable development at the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, saying that the most important outcome of the project was to raise awareness, of both hotel guests and hotel staff, because they were all stakeholders in the project and without their contribution the food waste reduction goals would not be possible, i.e. the final reduction of landfilled biodegradable waste.
The project envisages workshops at regional level that will start during May: in Zagreb, Opatija, Split, Dubrovnik, and Zadar. At the workshops all interested hotels will be advised on how they can join the project an educate their staff.
