The core idea behind Going Green is to reduce pollution in the environment long – term. A central theme here is to save resources, above all fossil energy whose production emits a lot of CO2. The most significant savings can be achieved by replacing old devices with innovative new ones. However, there is a second equally important topic that doesn’t require any investments. by Dieter Mailänder, Redaktionsburo Dieter Mailänder
“I would really like to do something if only I could”. Quite a few chefs think about this whenever they think about the technical state of their thermal devices, storage facilities, dishwashing systems or ventilation ceilings. Sometimes their budget is just enough for repairs that cannot be postponed. Does Going Green have a chance with them at all? Absolutely!
The truism is: Wherever we humans act, we pollute nature. Some pollution we can avoid, but not others. For example, it is not possible to produce a midday meal for a workforce without stress. But in almost everything we do privately or professionally, we can often reduce environmental pollution to a very great extent. One of the core ideas of Going Green is to support and encourage this. Even chefs, who must work with older devices, can make important contributions to this, and lower their energy costs. Time and again, consultants have found that simple and fast-acting measures that don’t incur any costs lead to savings of 10 to 15%.
They cite the following examples:
• Team/mindset/reporting:
Changing the mindset, convictions, and behavior patterns of the team (mindset) – addressing energy conservation (analogous to HACCP) – providing incentives for saving.
• Consumption figures:
Read regularly, document and discuss.
• Cooking devices/ventilation:
No stand-by; start up shortly before use – cover cooking container – for older cooking systems: match cooking containers to cooktops and hotplates – Oven: pre-heating is usually not necessary – use residual heat (when the doors are closed, the interior temperature only drops slowly) – connect ventilation ceilings and hoods with motion detectors.
• Dishwashing equipment:
Avoid washing up by hand – remove food residuals (wet waste garbage can) – utilize dishwasher capacity well – pre-clean wash ware if necessary (The effect: the water in the tank needs to be changed and heated less frequently; rinsing requires less water) – adjust the program run time to the degree of soiling of the wash ware – turn on the machine just before the beginning of the washing cycle – pre-wash only with lukewarm water (approx. 20 – 25° C) – remove limescale in the interior.
• Refrigerators and cold stores: devices that are set too low consume 4 to 6% more electricity per degree Celsius. Therefore: check temperatures (refrigerated goods: 7 °C, deep-frozen products -18 °C) daily (display and internal thermometer) – utilize refrigeration units well (less warm air enters the interior when the doors are open) – leave the ventilation openings of the refrigeration equipment open – dust the heat exchanger regularly (dust acts as an insulating layer) – always check the door frame seals and replace if necessary.
These measures, which can be implemented immediately, are neither new nor spectacular. Even though they should be part of the daily routine, they are easily overlooked by the responsible employees.
To read the entire article, please access your complimentary e-copy of Frozen Food Europe November-December, 2023 issue here.