Reducing Food Waste at Health Care Facilities in Erie County

Tyler Hamilton, Erie County

Robb White, Leanpath

Jennifer Griffith, NEWMOA

Stephanie Frisch, NEWMOA

Partners

• The Erie County Department of Environment & Planning
• Northeast Waste Management Officials’ Association (NEWMOA)
• Metz Culinary Management
• Leanpath

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Erie County Department of Environment & Planning

Erie County DEP’s mission is to make Erie County a better place through planning & environmental stewardship. Some of its environmental compliance programs include:

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• Climate Action and Sustainability
• Stormwater Management
• Watershed Management
• Brownfields Redevelopment
• Solid Waste & Recycling
• Composting
• GIS Mapping

What is NEWMOA?

• The Northeast Waste Management Officials’ Association
• Formed by the New England Governors back in the 1980s
• NJ & NY joined
• Formally recognized as an interstate entity by US EPA in 1986
• Non-partisan, non-profit association of the Solid Waste, Hazardous Waste, Waste Site Cleanup, and Pollution Prevention & Toxics programs in CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, RI, VT
• www.newmoa.org

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What is Metz Culinary Management?

• Serves: healthcare, corporate, education & airports
• Provides: dining management, facility services, ready-to-eat meals & catering
• Manages a diverse portfolio in the northeast, mid-Atlantic, southeast, south & the mid-west

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What is Leanpath?

• Leanpath is on a mission to make food waste prevention & measurement everyday practice in the world’s kitchens
• Began in 2004 & is now in thousands of kitchens worldwide
• Offices in US, UK & Singapore
• Sophisticated food waste tracking system
• Integrated scale, camera, touchscreen computer & software
• Generates summary & detailed reports
• More info during demo

Project Background

• New York State Food Donation & Food Scraps Recycling Law!
• Large generators (>2 tons/week) must:
• Donate all edible food
• Recycle all remaining food scraps IF within 25 miles of an organics recycler:
• Compost
• Anaerobic digestion
• Animal feed
• Exempted: hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities, K-12 schools & entities in NYC

Project Background (continued)

• Erie County awarded funding from NYS DEC in late 2019
• Original focus on using Leanpath at large restaurants
• Covid-19 pandemic begins before project can get started
• Restaurants closed
• Pivot to focus on health care facilities

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• Metz joins as project partner in early 2021
• Covid-19 pandemic/staffing challenges negatively impact the project through most of 2022
• Project with NEWMOA put on hold Fall 2021 – Winter 2022

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Project Background (continued)

• Other project components:
• Metz project case study write-up, Reducing Food Waste at Health Care Facilities in Erie County published in December
• Reducing Food Waste from Commercial Food Service in Erie County guide to be published in December
• Outreach presentation slide decks:
• Case study focus: NYSAR3 on November 16^th
• Reducing food waste focus: Roswell Park Cancer Institute & Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus – should be scheduled for December
• Inspiring students to care about food waste: Culinary school programs – Erie County working to identify

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This Project focused primarily on “Prevent Wasted Food” (aka Source Reduction)

Benefits of Preventing Food Waste

Less (or no) food in the trash equals:

• less trash to manage (and pay for)
• trash that is much less heavy and much less messy
• Reduced greenhouse gas emissions from landfills

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Saves the kitchen $$$

• Purchase costs
• Labor & energy costs to make food that is not sold/eaten
• Trash disposal fees

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Fewer wasted resources:

• Land, water, energy, labor, manufacturing, packaging, transportation
• Less wasted resources = less greenhouse gas emissions

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Questions?

Leanpath 360 Tool

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Demonstration by Chef Robb, Leanpath

Leanpath Basics and Benefits

We’re on a mission

To make food waste prevention and measurement�everyday practice in the world’s kitchens.

19 Years Focused on Food Waste

Founded January 2004

Daily measurement is the key to prevention and that’s where Leanpath starts

Leanpath is a tech-enabled, repeatable process to prevent wasted food by implementing a simple practice of daily measurement – quantification and characterization.

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We do this to shape and focus kitchen culture.

The Food Waste Problem

Prevention is the only solution that addresses food waste BEFORE it is created. It is the preferred way to manage food waste, and has the broadest beneficial impact.

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The Good News

Taking control of food waste dramatically increases a kitchen’s efficiency with triple-bottom-line benefits

Financial

Environmental

Social

Cut costs and increase efficiency

Increase organizational sustainability

Address hunger and climate justice

Lite �(Lightweight,�track by weight)

Leanpath Scout

& Scout Station�(Lightweight,�integrated scale)

Tracker 360�(Rugged, integrated bench scale, �waste photography)

Tracker 360FS�(Rugged, integrated�floor scale)

Leanpath Go�(Lightweight, �track by item)

LOW VOLUME �KITCHENS

HIGH VOLUME �KITCHENS

New

We offer the broadest array of food waste Trackers to ensure every kitchen has access to the most effective food waste prevention technology

We Offer Experience and a Culinary Perspective

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Deployments�in most every �foodservice segment

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Installations in�40 countries

Experience with over 2,500 customer deployments worldwide

The Leanpath Process

Proven Method

Leanpath@Google Proprietary and Confidential

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1: Place food on scale

The operator places food on the weighing scale before discarding. The scale reads the weight of the food and transmits the weight reading to the touchscreen, where it is displayed for the operator.

2: Characterize food using touchscreen

Using the touchscreen head unit, the operator characterizes the food waste, including the type of food and the reason it is being discarded. The selection options are customizable to best fit the operation

Food waste photography allows deeper analysis and insight to understand why food was wasted and training opportunities that can prevent it in the future

Data is automatically analyzed, recognizing patterns and delivering actionable insights

• Top wasted items and reasons
• Detailed transaction data
• Trends across your data set
• Staff participation insights
• Multi-site views for large operations

Food waste is tracked and analyzed, identifying top food waste items and the behaviors driving them. At that point Leanpath’s software initiates an automated series of triggers and interventions built around behavioral science techniques to drive behavior change.

Leanpath Online analyzes your waste data and automatically suggests SMART Goals that will have the largest impact

Progress is tracked and reported.

In a study conducted in partnership with a Leanpath enterprise client, sites that regularly used Goals saved an additional 3% of COGS as a percent of revenue vs. sites that did not use the tool

Instant Alerts let chefs intervene immediately to stop food waste

Daily and Weekly Reports keep the team focused on trends and success

What Prevention Looks Like

Get started

• Set baseline

• Ongoing measurement

Learn and adjust

• Understand what is wasted and why

• Make smart changes

Maintain and control

• Tracking and prevention become a � part of kitchen culture

Leanpath + Metz Healthcare + NEWMOA Partnership

Deployment Overview

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Site Feedback

It is easy, helpful, accurate when entered properly

It will help control waste and spend on products

Sustainability & Social Impact

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Your food waste prevention impact is equivalent to...

JANUARY 2023 - SEPTEMBER 2023

Avoiding emissions from

137

metric tons of CO2

Conserving

482,422

bathtubs of water

Saving

36,080

meals

SINCE PROGRAM START

Avoiding emissions from

412

metric tons of CO2

Conserving

1,451,070

bathtubs of water

Saving

108,525

meals

You are part of a critical global movement.

By reducing food waste, you are addressing the top-ranked solution for emissions reduction per Drawdown Project, and you are advancing critically-needed progress toward Target 12.3 — the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal calling for a 50% reduction in global food loss and waste by 2030.

Equivalency factors provided by the US EPA and USDA.

Questions?

Small Hospital

Assisted Living and Rehab Facility

01

Large Hospitals

02

01

The Project’s Four�Healthcare Settings

HighPointe on Michigan (HPM)

Millard Filmore Suburban (MFS)

• Erie County Medical Center (ECMC)
• Buffalo General Medical Center (BGMC)

(ECMC & BGMC each have 2 Leanpath systems)

Timeline

2021

Leanpath Scales installed & baseline data established

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2022

Healthcare facilities retail cafeterias reopen to the public

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2023

Edited categorizations in Leanpath system

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2023

Data analyzed & recommendations provided

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Leanpath Data Comparison

• Facilities not operating at full-capacity in 2021 due to Covid-19 Pandemic
• Inconsistent use of Leanpath scales due to ongoing staff-shortages
• Categorization of data has changed since scales were installed

2021 & 2023 data cannot be definitively compared due to:

Leanpath �360 Tool:��Required data entry for each transaction

Mealtime

Location Generated

Type of Food

Loss Reason

Food Preparation

Main Kitchen

Each facility has a main kitchen that:

1. Prepares and assembles all in-patient meals
2. Cooks items for retail cafeteria and catering
3. Packages Grab & Go items

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Type & quantity of food removed from storage is noted on a Metz form

At least a 1/3 pan of food is cooked to justify the time and effort to prepare the food

Kitchen Staffing

• Kitchen staff are categorized by hourly wages and are members of a union
• Food service workers who staff the patient tray line
• Kitchen culinary staff who assist the chefs in preparing food
• Hospitality Associates (HAs) who interact with patients
• Staff working in the retail cafeteria
• Chefs & operations managers are salaried and not union members
• Due to union contracts, only non-union staff use the Leanpath system

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Generally, the kitchens are chronically short-staffed!

Generation of Food Waste

Date Labels       Safety

• Misunderstanding leads to a lot of waste
• There are no government requirements for date labels in New York except for baby formula (a federal requirement)
• Dates are determined by the manufacturer – their guarantee of top quality
• Most foods are safe to eat & top quality well after labeled date
• Yogurt & cheese - 7+ days
• Eggs - 3+ weeks
• Canned/boxed - 3+ months
• Lots of other types of food

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• Use the “look & smell” test

Generation of Food Waste

At the four facilities, food waste is generated from:

• In-patient meal preparation
• Un-eaten in-patient meal items returned with the tray
• Preparation of food to sell in the retail cafeteria
• Unsold cafeteria food that cannot be saved for reuse

Path to Disposal

Majority of food waste is disposed into trash can

Trash Can

Leanpath Scale

Waste categorized & weighed

Garbage disposal

Some unusable leftover cooked food is disposed down an in-sink disposal

Landfill

Totes of trash are brought to the hospital’s trash compactor before heading to landfill

(Metz does not pay for trash disposal)

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3

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In-Patient Meal Service

• Acute patients served on reusable, heated plates with covers & use metal flatware
• Behavioral health patients require all disposable tableware to minimize possible harm to themselves & others
• Waste from returned patient meals is considered contaminated & is not measured or tracked
• Because it is considered a bio-hazard, there is no opportunity to divert this waste from disposal

Retail Cafeteria

Each facility has a retail cafeteria that:

1. Primarily serves staff
2. Offers multiple hot bar options
3. Provides “Grab & Go” individually packed items

The three hospitals offer a salad bar

Food waste generated by cafeteria customers is not measured & sent to landfill

Offer collection of mixed recycling

Catering Service

Metz provides catering services for on-site meetings & events:

• Typically, 1-5 events daily
• Metz prepares & is paid for what is ordered
• Type & quantity of waste generated is unknown since it does not return to the kitchen

Waste Minimization Strategies

Use Leanpath Data

Every 2 weeks Metz managers meet with the chefs from the 4 facilities to:

• Review Leanpath data
• Develop waste reduction ideas
• Make adjustments, including to: food purchase orders, menu items offered & meal production quantities

Repurpose Leftovers

Additional examples include: soups, breakfast pizzas, doctors lounge meals

Small Batch Cooking

• To minimize leftovers, Metz institutes small batch cooking
• Example:
• Preparing 500 in-patient meal trays takes several hours
• Instead of cooking 500 meals at once, Matz cooks two trays at a time to better understand the amount of food required
• Food that is not used for its original purpose due to overproduction is cooled & stored so it can be repurposed

If the kitchen is short-staffed, they are not always able to cook in small batches & overproduction can result

Questions?

Overview & Data

Healthcare Facilities

Several Factors that Influence the Quality of Leanpath Data

• Leanpath data accuracy requires that all food waste is weighed prior to disposal
• Users need to enter the type/size of container, type of food, its mealtime source & loss reason – if any are not entered accurately, the effects ripple through the data
• For example, the tare (empty) weight of each container is in the Leanpath system (entered during baseline) – if the user enters the wrong container size – or if the container they have is not in the system – the weight data is not accurate
• Scale is run by software that relies on a stable internet connection to record data entries

Leanpath Loss Reasons

The data was examined to categorize the data as related to “buying too much” or “making too much”

Buying too much = “Spoiled Before Use” (Rows 1 & 2)

Making too much = ”Overproduction” (Rows 3 to 6)

There are additional loss reasons that were considered “Other”: Equipment failure, Mishandled and Quality

Overall Results – Change in Food Waste Weight Recorded�June 2021 compared with mid-July/August 2023

*Hospital cafeterias operated at a fraction of capacity in 2021 due to Covid so an increase is expected. HPM cafeteria operations in 2023 similar to in 2021.

Reductions cannot be fully attributed to waste reduction – likely also related to inconsistent and/or inaccurate use of Leanpath

Percent of Days When Data Was Entered into Leanpath�

(July to September 2023)

Facility-specific Results

Large Kitchen: Erie County Medical Center (ECMC)

• Variety of medical units including burn care, behavioral health services, transplantation, oncology, rehabilitation, and a level 1 adult trauma center
• 550 in-patient beds at full capacity
• 70% of patients receive acute care and 30% receive behavioral health care
• Approximately 4,500 professional and support staff
• Fully staffed on a weekday, Metz would have a total of approximately 50 hourly and salaried employees working at ECMC for all shifts combined
• Cafeteria serves approximately 1,000 people each day
• Unionized members of the kitchen staff are members of the CSEA union

Large Kitchen: Buffalo General Medical Center (BGMC)

• Wide range of medical units and specialties including cardiac services, general and robotic surgery,  bariatrics, urology, orthopedics, gastroenterology, rehabilitation medicine, and neurology
• 484 in-patient beds at full capacity
• Approximately 3,000 professional and support staff
• Fully staffed on a weekday, Metz would have a total of approximately 50 hourly and salaried employees working at BGMC for all shifts combined
• Cafeteria serves approximately 1,250 people each day
• Unionized members of the kitchen staff are members of the Kaleida union

Smaller Kitchen: Millard Filmore Suburban (MFS)

• Variety of medical units including oncology, comprehensive maternities services with neonatology, and a specialized robotic surgery program
• 265 in-patient beds at full capacity
• Approximately 2,800 professional and support staff
• Fully staffed on a weekday, Metz would have a total of approximately 30 hourly and salaried employees working at MFS for all shifts combined
• Retail cafeteria serves approximately 800 people each day
• Unionized members of the kitchen staff are members of the Kaleida union

Assisted Living Facility: HighPointe on Michigan (HPM)

• Pediatric and adult long-term care facility that provides varying levels of care including medically complex care, subacute care, dementia care and long-term care
• Approximately 300 in-patient beds divided into 14 separate pods
• Approximately 1,200 professional and support staff
• Fully staffed on a weekday, Metz would have a total of approximately 30 hourly and salaried employees working at HPM for all shifts combined
• Cafeteria is only open for lunch and serves approximately 120 people each day
• Unionized members of the kitchen staff are members of the CSEA union

Observations

Data presented represents a short snapshot due to several challenges:

• Covid-19 pandemic impacting facility operations
• Changes in food type & loss reason categories
• Short-staffed kitchens
• Data quality challenges due to user input accuracy:
• Not all food is weighed before disposal
• User input choices not always accurate
• For example, a lot of waste often associated with one meal – likely more related to the time of day that the waste is disposed

Data from this study could be used as a baseline for future comparisons

Recommendations

• Facilities should continue using Leanpath: data - however imperfect - does prompt action
• To improve data quality & usefulness: Metz & Leanpath should implement ongoing routine on-site training to promote regular & correct use of the Leanpath tool
• When union contracts renew, add the ability or requirement to assist with food waste tracking
• Erie County should work with Metz & facilities to compost food waste for food that has not come in contact with patients
• Metz should observe frequently thrown away in-patient food & adjust portion size and/or menu items
• Erie County should work with hospitals to implement an educational waste reduction plan for catering operations

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Composting Benefits

• Removes food from trash so there is less trash to manage & it is cleaner & less heavy
• Composting preserves nutrients & returns it to the soil which reduces the need for chemical fertilizers
• Removes food waste from landfills which reduces:
• Methane gas generation (potent greenhouse gas)
• Moisture (which reduces quantity of leachate)
• Attraction of unwanted wildlife
• Quantity of gases requiring management

Composting Integration

• Erie County owns & operates a composting site at the Erie County Alden Correctional Facility
• Recently began collections from outside the correctional facility
• The operation has the capacity to accept additional food scraps
• Both ECMC & BGMC have space in their kitchens to accommodate collection for composting
• Put a compost collection container at Leanpath scale instead of (or next to) the trash can
• Prep waste can be collected in a metal pan or small bucket on the countertop that can be sanitized in the dishwasher
• Totes could be picked up on a regular basis at no cost to the hospital or Metz

Alden Correction Facility Compost Program Results

• Since 2017, 109 tons of food waste diverted from landfill
• 96 metric tons of CO2 equivalent avoided
• Reduced size of trash dumpsters & frequency of pick-up
• Save $20,400 annually
• Kitchen staff appreciate the program because they don’t have to take trash to the dumpster as often & report that the collection bins are convenient & easy to use

Additional Recommendations for Overall Waste Reduction

• Metz should evaluate offering the option for reusable tableware for dine-in patrons
• Metz should only utilize #1 or #2 plastic takeout containers to ensure all disposable containers are recyclable (no #6!)
• Erie County should work with the hospitals & Metz to institute a recycling education program & improve signage
• Metz should ensure all kitchen-generated packaging is recycled to the extent feasible

Results & Possibilities?

• Leanpath data indicates that - compared to baseline – the project (4 facilities together from May 2021 through October 2023) has resulted in a total of:
• 128,702 pounds of food waste reduced
• Keep in mind all the various concerns about data usability!
• In New York there are 261 hospitals & 610 long-term care facilities so doing very simplified math - over approximately 2 ½ years:
• 14,028 tons of food waste could be reduced!

Questions?��Tyler Hamilton, Erie County�tyler.hamilton@erie.gov ��Robb White, Leanpath�rwhite@leanpath.com ��Jennifer Griffith, NEWMOA�jgriffith@newmoa.org� �Stephanie Frisch, NEWMOA�sfrisch@newmoa.org