Hospitality energy saving expert, Dr Sam Mudie, talks to Ethical Reading volunteer Jamie Gordon about some of their frustrations with the hospitality and catering industry, and how a radical change in mindset could help.
As part of the upcoming Reading Climate Festival, I was invited by Ethical Reading to give a keynote and join a discussion panel exploring how local businesses can lead the way in creating a more ethical, sustainable world. In the spirit of that conversation, I recently sat down with Jamie – a hospitality professional and Ethical Reading volunteer – to swap notes (and gripes) on the state of sustainability in our sector. Let’s just say the discussion got… heated.
Jamie, who has worked across events, pop-ups and corporate catering, shared stories that will sound depressingly familiar to anyone in the industry: pristine pineapples binned en masse after a single day selling piña coladas at a festival; entire trays of cottage pie discarded daily in a corporate canteen ‘just in case’ more staff showed up; outdoor carpets laid out for a few hours, then sent straight to landfill; and, most maddeningly of all, clingfilm – on everything (cutlery included!).
These aren’t rare outliers. They’re business as usual for many in foodservice and hospitality. And they’re driven by fear: fear of running out, of not meeting sky-high customer expectations, of a single complaint over a missing menu item.
But what’s the cost of that fear?
In my PhD research with Mitchells & Butlers, we modelled a switch from traditional cooking equipment (like gas-fired chargrills) to more energy-efficient kit (steam combis, microwave hybrids). The savings were staggering: over £13 million, 38 million kWh, and 10.7 million kgCO₂e annually – from just a few behavioural and equipment changes. Scale that across the UK’s casual dining sector, and you’re looking at £6 billion in energy savings. And yet, the trial didn’t roll out – because cooking times went from 7 to 11 minutes. Too risky.
Jamie put it perfectly: “At some point, people are going to have to get used to change.”
Whether it’s waiting a few extra minutes for your food or learning that it’s OK for an event to not be over-catered – shifting expectations is essential. Part of that shift lies in honest communication: simple signage like ‘We’re trialling more sustainable practices – your meal may take a little longer, but it’ll come with a significantly lower carbon footprint’ can go a long way. Better demand forecasting is key too – many workplace caterers already track hot-desk or parking bookings, which could be used to predict footfall and align meal production. Pre-ordering systems can support this further, reducing overproduction and waste.
Critically, we need to rethink the incentives and penalties baked into third-party catering contracts: instead of fines for ‘running out’, why not reward low waste levels and penalise consistent overproduction? If waste costs (more) money, operators will start paying attention. Changing behaviours doesn’t mean compromising quality – it means designing smarter systems and giving both caterers and customers the tools (and patience) to do better. Our kitchens don’t always need better tech – they need better culture. And that starts with brave conversations, clearer KPIs, and a willingness to put the planet and people ahead of perfection.
We’ll be continuing this conversation at Reading Climate Festival. But for now, Jamie and I would like to raise a (sustainably sourced) glass to everyone in the sector fighting for smarter, leaner, lower-carbon kitchens. It’s time to stir the pot – and change what’s cooking.
And if you’re particularly interested in hearing about how my research and work has shaped my domestic cooking habits (and saved a lot of money and emissions!), you can find out about my ‘insane’ 400 meal batch cooking on my personal website, The Mudie Method.
About the author
Dr Sam Mudie – Director of Consultancy services at Hospitality Energy Saving and Sustainability (HESS)
Through her consultancy, Hospitality Energy Saving and Sustainability, Dr Sam Mudie leads the development and execution of sustainability strategies and the energy and carbon reduction needs of over 7,000 UK pubs, restaurants, stadia and hotels.
Sam is unique in the industry, having completed her doctoral thesis on Energy Reduction in Commercial Catering and published eight award-winning peer-reviewed academic journal papers on the subject. This research measured the energy consumption attributed to equipment, menus and staff behaviours within the food service industry for the first time.
Sam completed her doctorate at the University of Reading, where she also held the post of Energy Officer for four years.
Her subsequent projects have resulted in a range of successful energy reduction initiatives, achieving millions of pounds worth of savings.
