A Review of Environmentally Sustainable Practices in the Restaurant Sector
Abstract
There is increased attention on sustainable practices in the restaurant industry given the adverse impact of restaurants on the environment. This study, therefore, analyzed the body of literature on environmentally sustainable practices in the restaurant sector to identify the common practices implemented at every stage of restaurants, from procurement to waste management and disposal. A scoping review following the guidelines of PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews was applied to collect data and thematically analyze the themes emerging from the selected literature. ATLAS.ti version 21 was used to analyze the data. A total of twenty-eight articles documenting environmentally sustainable practices in the restaurant sector were analyzed. From this literature, a total of eighty-three green practices were identified including: thirty-three green inputs, nineteen sustainable practices at the procurement stage, eight green production practices, eight green service practices, and fifteen green safety, sanitation, and maintenance practices. Waste management and disposal strategies were also identified and classified into the waste hierarchy model. From the literature synthesis, a conceptual framework for green practices in restaurants based on the systems theory was developed.