The linear model—take resources, make products, dispose of waste—is giving way to circular thinking across industries. Food service, with its high throughput of materials and significant waste streams, is a prime candidate for circular transformation.
What Is Circular Economy?
Circular economy principles aim to keep resources in productive use for as long as possible, extract maximum value from them, then recover and regenerate products and materials at end of life.
In food service, this means:
- Reduce: Use fewer resources to deliver the same outcomes
- Reuse: Keep items in service longer before disposal
- Recycle/Recover: Ensure end-of-life materials return to productive use
Circular Principles Applied to Food
Design out waste: Menu engineering that uses whole ingredients, cross-utilisation between dishes, trim becoming stock or staff meals.
Keep products in use: Proper storage extending shelf life, batch sizing aligned to demand, redistribution of surplus to staff, charities, or food rescue organisations.
Regenerate natural systems: Composting returns nutrients to soil. Anaerobic digestion captures energy. Packaging from renewable sources breaks down safely.
Practical Applications
Whole-Ingredient Cooking
Traditional cooking often treats trim as waste. Circular approach:
- Vegetable trim becomes stock, sauces, purées
- Meat bones become broths and demi-glace
- Citrus peel becomes zest, garnish, infusions
- Day-old bread becomes croutons, breadcrumbs, desserts
This requires thinking about menu design holistically—dishes that create trim alongside dishes that use it.
Packaging Circularity
Single-use packaging is fundamentally linear. Circular alternatives:
- Returnable containers for deliveries
- Deposit schemes for takeaway containers
- Packaging from compostable or recycled materials
- Elimination where possible
Food Redistribution
Surplus food that can't be sold still has value:
- Staff meals (proper protocol, fair pricing)
- Food rescue organisations (Too Good To Go, FareShare)
- Community partnerships (local shelters, food banks)
This requires surplus visibility and processes to act quickly while food is still suitable.
Waste Valorisation
When prevention and redistribution aren't possible:
- Anaerobic digestion captures energy
- Composting creates soil amendment
- Animal feed (where regulations permit)
- Industrial uses (certain waste streams)
Business Model Implications
Circular economy isn't just about waste management—it can reshape business models:
Product-as-service: Equipment leasing instead of ownership, with maintenance and end-of-life handling included.
Extended producer responsibility: Working with suppliers who take back packaging or use materials that close the loop.
Symbiotic relationships: Your waste is someone else's input. Coffee grounds for mushroom growers. Spent grain for bakeries. Cooking oil for biodiesel.
Getting Started
Circular transformation doesn't happen overnight. Start with:
- Audit material flows — Map what comes in, what goes out, what's wasted
- Identify high-impact streams — Focus on largest waste volumes and most problematic materials
- Explore alternatives — For each stream, what circular option exists?
- Build partnerships — Circular economy works through collaboration
- Measure and iterate — Track progress, identify obstacles, refine approach
The Role of Technology
Data enables circular operations:
- Food waste monitoring reveals exactly what's being wasted
- Analytics identify patterns and opportunities
- Inventory systems optimise ordering to reduce surplus
- Tracking enables verification of circular claims
Beyond Environmental Benefits
Circular approaches often deliver:
- Cost savings — Waste is a cost; prevention is savings
- Innovation — Constraints drive creativity
- Brand value — Sustainability credentials increasingly matter
- Resilience — Less dependence on linear supply chains
The hospitality businesses thriving in 2030 will be those who embrace circularity today.
Learn how waste monitoring supports circular operations in your food service business.