NACS SHOW REWIND: Waste Not, Want Not
LAS VEGAS — As foodservice grows in importance throughout the convenience store industry, the issue of controlling and successfully managing food waste has become increasingly paramount. A special panel of speakers at this year's NACS show in Las Vegas offered up their ideas on how to incorporate sustainable practices into retail foodservice operations.
Liza Salaria, senior vice president, practice lead, category management and foodservice for the consulting firm, Impact 21, a W. Capra Company, outlined the key areas in which waste can occur in a foodservice operation. She listed some of those areas and how retailers can deal with them in the education session, "Sustainable Practices in Effectively Managing Food Service Waste."
- Overproduction: Use predictive planning technology.
- Quality: Use packaging that extends shelf-life and improves quality.
- Wasted Motion: Improve the work area design for employees and increase efficiency.
- Extra Processing: Ensure there isn't excessive food preparation.
- Inventory: Maintain optimal quantities.
Salaria also suggested pursuing partnerships, such as donations to charities like Feeding America, to repurpose waste and avoid landfills.
Paul Servais, vice president of foodservice for La Crosse, Wis.-based Kwik Trip, shared some of the tactics used by the 875-store chain that generated $1.6 billion in food sales in fiscal 2024. He said that the company, noted for being a hot food and bakery destination, is moving in 2025 from history-based Excel spreadsheets to predictive artificial intelligence to improve production plans and reduce waste.
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Another way the retailer reduces waste is through work design improvements in the kitchen. These changes were designed to reduce steps in kitchen recipes and processes, provide consistent food quality, provide less stress in kitchens through efficiencies in labor, and reduce wait time for customers.
On the packaging front, Kwik Trip utilizes paper board packaging for its grab-and-go chicken program which provides longer holding time, improved quality and the ability to let the food cool in the package and be sold the next day as cold chicken.
The retailer also instituted a camera system to monitor grab-and-go cases. This allows the team members to replenish more quickly and improves in-stock position during peak hours.
Finally, Kwik Trip has enjoyed a 13-year partnership with Feeding America. Expired food is picked up multiple times a week at every store. In fiscal 2024, the retailer will donate 4.3 million pounds of food.
Beth Hoffer, vice president of Knoxville, Tenn.-based Weigel's, which operates 81 family-owned c-stores in eastern Tennessee, said her customers have embraced the retailer's grab-and-go and bakery offerings. Like Kwik Trip, Weigel's also reimaged its kitchen work area to add storage to the production area, allow the hot food merchandisers to be replenished from the production area, and improved the equipment layout so that the kitchen can be operated with just one employee instead of two.
Weigel's roller grill replenishment program stores all grill products on one cart in the cooler, making life easier for employees who can fill the grill in less time and with only one trip.
Both Weigel's and Kwik Trip operate vertically integrated central commissaries, however, unlike the larger chain which largely flash freezes its food and finishes it at the store, Weigel's food is fully finished at the commissary.
Hoffer noted that the efficient management of waste not only benefits the bottom line but also has a positive impact on employee satisfaction.
The 2024 NACS Show took place Oct. 7-10 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The 2025 NACS Show will be hosted at Chicago's McCormick Place Convention Center from Oct. 14-17.