Excessive use of disposables has come to the forefront of the restaurant industry during this pandemic, due to many restaurants needing to shift their core business to take-out and delivery. We've been interviewed numerous times (Washington Post, CNBC, etc.) in the past few months regarding the question of how to minimize the negative impact of the increased use of disposables.
The short answer is:
If you still have business onsite, develop a protocol to sanitize and handle your dishes in a sanitary method, giving your customers sustainable reusables in a way that is clean and safe.
For your take-out and delivery business, use high post-consumer waste recycled packaging. Only use compostables if you are in a city where customers have curbside composting, which is very rare.
For take-out and delivery, decrease unnecessary waste such as excessive napkins, condiments, and utensils. A restaurant can save $5,000 per year by doing this properly.
Make positive environmental changes in other areas of your restaurant now, such as safer effective cleaning chemicals, energy-efficient lighting, water-efficient spray valves, and more.