Food Waste & Green Business Practices

All businesses must think about the waste that they create and the energy they use through the normal operations of the business. A large waste stream and inefficient energy use will result in higher costs and lower profit margins for the business as well as negative impacts outside the business: more waste in the landfill, less food in the community, and increased greenhouse gas emissions.

Small Business Administration (SBA) - Green Business Guide

This guide will walk you through various resources related to energy efficiency and reducing your waste stream. For businesses ready to take a bigger step, Green America's Green Business Network offers a Certification for Green Businesses, opportunities connect with green consumers, and connections to other green businesses. Small Business Trends also has a list of 25 Green Business Certifications that may be helpful to consider for your business.

Please refer to the Food System Resources page for specific resources based on your food business type.

Checklist

  • Learn about food waste prevention and donation
  • Explore opportunities for energy efficiency
  • Identify environmentally sustainable business practices for your business

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Green Business Resources

Food Waste Prevention & Donation

Franklin County residents and businesses send nearly one million pounds of food waste to the Franklin County Sanitary Landfill every day. This is the equivalent of wasting 22 million gallons of gasoline, 41 billion gallons of water, and 160,000 acres of land per year. Furthermore, when businesses discard food which could have been donated, reused or rescued, they also discard their ability to profit from selling that food.

Fortunately, there are resources to help you ensure that your business prevents as much food waste as possible while also maximizing the good that your business can do for your community through safe food donation.

Save More Than Food is a hub for food waste education and prevention for Central Ohio, which will be launching in mid-2020. Developed by the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO) and the Central Ohio Food Waste Initiative (COFWI), the collective impact collaborative is working to cut Central Ohio Food Waste in half by 2030.

The Save More Than Food resources and public awareness campaign aims to support businesses as well as consumers, schools, and other stakeholders in reducing their food waste. When available, the Save More Than Food “Food Business” page will contain resources ranging from guides to safe food donation in Central Ohio to local partners for compost, food rescue, customer engagement, and more.

Franklin County Public Health and Columbus Public Health have also partnered with SWACO and COFWI to develop a brief guide to donating prepared food items that includes information about how businesses can donate prepared foods while being protected from any liability issues. Reach out to SWACO (foodwaste@swaco.com) or the Central Ohio Food Waste Initiative (COFWI) with any additional questions about safe food donation.

Here are some additional resources related to food waste and food donation:

  • Food Rescue US (Nonprofit) - Technology platform that facilitates the transfer of excess fresh food from grocers, restaurants, and other sources, to social service agencies that feed people who are food insecure
  • Mid-Ohio Food Bank (Nonprofit) - Collects and distributes food through a network of emergency food locations in 20 Ohio counties, including Franklin County.
  • SWACO’s Food Waste Audit Tool (Local Government) - Helps businesses identify current waste practices and opportunities for improvement
  • Ohio EPA (State Government)
  • OSU Food Waste Collaborative (Public University) - Collection of researchers, practitioners, and students working together to promote the reduction and redirection of food waste
  • OSU Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) (Public University) - Ohio State research center focused on a wide range of agricultural issues, including recycling food waste
  • OSU Ohio Composting and Manure Management (OCAMM) (Public University) - Research and development related to composting and waste
  • The Compost Exchange (For Profit) - Commercial composting services for the Columbus area
  • GoZERO (For Profit) - Commercial composting services for the Columbus area
  • Innovative Organics Recycling (For Profit) - Commercial composting services for the Columbus area

Recycling

Franklin County businesses discard nearly 600,000 tons of material at the county landfill each year. Surprisingly, a quarter of that material could have been recovered through common commercial recycling programs available today.

Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO) provides all of the resources commercial partners need to start up a diversion program or improve an existing one. The SWACO Business Toolkit provides step-by-step instructions on analyzing your waste stream and engaging your waste and recycling service provider. The toolkit also includes guidance and best practices for educating employees, promoting your efforts to current and new customers and tracking your progress. For more information please contact SWACO.

Energy Efficiency

Environmental Sustainability

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