Green is in style right now. No, I am not referring about a salad bar—or at least not only salads. Ignoring the effect hotels, cafes, and restaurants have on the environment is difficult these days. Ever stood at a buffet and pondered where all that extra food disappeared to? You are not on your alone. Though food service is ground zero for waste, most people associate it with great plates and clinking drinks. Mountains of such. It makes you stop the next time you go out for supper, right? See the answer on Lianne Wadi

Let us briefly consider food waste. The stats are astounding: over one-third of all food is wasted worldwide. Imagine three pizzas, then picture one wrecked before you have a taste. And it goes beyond the cuisine as well. Tossed-out food equals trashed water, lost energy, and invisible carbon clouds flying into the heavens.

Menues are evolving. Farms are nearer. Not imported burning plane fuel, chefs want local foods. It would be easy to swap that avocado from halfway around the earth for greens down the block. Restaurants grab these trades, cutting their carbon impact and simultaneously saving a little money. Yes, greener occasionally results in smaller expenses.

Next comes packaging. Ever attempted dissecting a takeout meal and ended up surrounded by a plastic mountain? Businesses related to hospitality are waking up to that ugly pile. These are commercial necessities rather than trends: compostable containers, reusable bags, and straws that won’t survive you by centuries. Sometimes it seems as though everyone uses their recycling container on first-name basis.

Dineers also care. People want more than simply a good meal; they want to know whether their dinner harmed bees, damaged the earth, or supported unfair labor. At a gathering, bring up “sustainable seafood” and see how opinions in the room come alive. People probe. They fire waitresses. They publish reviews, positive or negative, on whether companies are living up to their name.

Consumption of energy also comes under close examination. Lighting, refrigerators, ovens—they consume if left unbridled. Energy audits, green roofs, and smart renovations have gone from rare to somewhat common. Little adjustments like replacing aging lights and insulating refrigerators really make a difference. Like moving from a gas-guzzling clunker to a hybrid overnight.

Reducing waste goes beyond simply eating leftovers. Those little, forgettable conditioner bottles are being replaced by certain hotels. Big dispensers save pennies and help to cut waste. Reversing linens? Laundry uses a fair amount of electricity, hence putting a “reuse your towel” sign actually saves rather than only annoying.

Not a punchline, though, is sustainability. It now is a marketing superpower and a badge of glory. Want to stand out? Show you operate a lean, green kitchen. Post on your collaboration with neighborhood gardens. Make food using what is in season, not what flies in. Encouragement of diners to follow your green path provides motivation for return.

The road is not always straight-forward. There are difficulties. Sometimes local procurement results in erratic menus. In small communities, composting services may be erratic. The daily rhythm is balance; magic is not a wand; rather, wiser decisions day in, day out.

So the next time you reserve a table, look about. That candle might run on solar energy. Perhaps every morning the chef shakes hands with the farmer who grows lettuce. Sustainability counts, and its roots are getting deeper annually.