THE PANDEMIC ’ S GIVEN US A LOT OF TIME TO REFLECT ON SUSTAINABILITY AND RECYCLING .
THE PANDEMIC ’ S GIVEN US A LOT OF TIME TO REFLECT ON SUSTAINABILITY AND RECYCLING .
SHANE BRUMMER , GM , BIRKENHEAD HOUSE
Hidden solution : There ’ s pad thai inside that banana leaf , which has replaced plastic wrappings at Six Senses Yao Noi in Phang-nga ,
Thailand .
roller coaster ” when he ended the use of vacuum bags for sous-vide cooking . His chefs were fans of that style of cuisine — and were using 38,000 plastic bags a year . “ We can ’ t be Six Senses and use that amount of single-use plastic and be proud of it ,” Butti says . But other techniques were found . “ When the solution works , then the morale goes up , and then the pride goes up ,” he says .
Butti replaced plastic cling wrap with metal containers ; now food is wrapped in banana leaves and “ very pretty ” antibacterial beeswax paper . “ Our kitchen has not seen a cling film or plastic squeeze bottle since the first of January ,” he says . Even with the pandemic , Butti and the rest of Six Senses didn ’ t bring plastic back . “ This definitely came up ,” Smith says . “ The whole world was scrambling , and everyone was wearing face shields and plastic gloves , and it was a process of determining what really increases safety for our hosts and safety for our guests . The truth is , in most cases , plastic doesn ’ t help that much .”
Kitchen staff do not wear gloves . “ I worked for 10 years on ships , and what I learned is that the moment people wear plastic gloves , they feel safe , and they actually start working unsafe ,” Butti says . “ Many , many kitchens wear plastic gloves all the time , but they touch everything .” Instead , he says , “ it ’ s ‘ wash your hands , wash your hands , wash your hands .’”
LOCAL AND HOME-GROWN At the Birkenhead House in Hermanus , South Africa , the kitchen increased sustainable measures to reduce costs , says GM Shane Brummer . “ The pandemic ’ s given us a lot of time to reflect on sustainability and recycling ,” he says . “ With the pandemic , you don ’ t want a lot of supplies coming onto the property .”
Brummer and senior sous chef Daniel Marais switched to local suppliers ; the kitchen began using more metal containers with attached sealers and began composting for the hotel ’ s gardens , another cost
savings . “ We ’ ve knocked down our plastic usage by 60 % or 70 %,” Brummer says . The hotel is transforming a bare exterior wall into a growing wall and plans to install an irrigation system . “ By this time next year , we hope to be completely self-sustaining with lettuces , leafy vegetables and herbs ,” Marais says . “ Things like that are a major cost for us .” Ailish Keane , purchasing manager and chair for sustainability at the Hotel d ’ Angleterre Geneva , says eliminating the breakfast buffet has reduced waste . “ Serving the breakfast a la carte has really reduced our food waste in that area ,” Keane says . “ If someone comes down to the breakfast buffet five minutes before closing , you don ’ t want to see two sausages left — you always want a buffet to look generous . But if we cook only for those two people , instead of having food sitting there , we ’ ve reduced waste .”
Last year , the hotel also began working with the nearby village of Cong , doing workshops on sustainability and helping local businesses take steps like eliminating plastic straws and separating food waste . “ We were about six months into this project before COVID-19 ,” Keane says . “ We definitely will continue with this for next year .”
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