HCFS Seeks Innovative Sustainability Programs
The Hobart Center for Foodservice Sustainability (HCFS), a nonprofit, industry-wide forum supporting sustainable equipment and design, is now accepting applications for its annual $5,000 sustainability grant.
The grant will go to the individual or organization judged to have the best-executed foodservice or grocery sustainability project of the year. Applications must be received by 5 p.m. ET on Jan. 31, 2012, and the recipient will be revealed at the 2012 National Restaurant Association show in Chicago.
The winning project must demonstrate clear planning, precise implementation and a strong return on investment.
Applicants can enter by submitting a case study of 10 pages or fewer explaining how their program deals with one of more of these foodservice sustainability challenges: how the operation reduced energy/water use, how the operation reduced creation of wastewater or solid waste, and how the operation deployed farm-to-fork initiatives or other combined programs
Applications must include a financial analysis of the sustainability program, including the cost of implementation, continuing costs and the ROI, with a summary of the cumulative cost saving. Descriptions of specific foodservice equipment used to achieve sustainability goals, such as Energy Star-qualified equipment, are also encouraged.
The grant recipient must use the $5,000 to invest in further sustainability efforts. The selected individual and/or company will be eligible to join the HCFS fellows and to assist with future initiatives.
Georgia Tech Dining Services/Sodexo was the 2010 HCFS grant recipient for its comprehensive, cost-neutral approach to foodservice sustainability. According to sustainability coordinator Nell Fry, the HCFS grant enabled company to develop a front-line employee training program that’s now used as a benchmark by many peer institutions.
The HCFS was established by Troy, Mich.-based Hobart, a producer of commercial food equipment and service for the foodservice and grocery industries. The forum’s five fellows are Michael Berning, director of sustainable design and principal, Heapy Engineering LLP; Rick Cartwright, VP, ITW Food Equipment Group; John Turenne, founder and president of Sustainable Food Systems; Richard Young, senior engineer/director of education, Food Service Technology Center; Dori Martin, district marketing manager, Georgia Tech Dining Services/Sodexo; and Fry of Georgia Tech Dining Services/Sodexo.
For more information, visit www.sustainablefoodequipment.com/Hobart-Center-For-Foodservice-Sustainability/HCFS-Grant/.