ECO-FRIENDLY CATERING, SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
As responsible service providers, we strive to reduce our impact on the environment, not only because it seems, the biggest challenge of the 21st century is to protect our planet, but also it helps us to avoid waste. As caterers and Earthlings, we have a responsibility to ensure that our grandchildren can enjoy the beauty and treasures of our environment.
Therefore:
We are doing our utmost to reduce food and plastic waste as much as possible!
We’ve looked at our services, our departments and, step by step, we’ve consciously adapted them to minimise our impact on the environment. We looked for measures that we could implement in the long term to reduce not only our own ecological footprint but that of our guests’ as well.
“OUR GREEN-ERY” for reducing our impact on the environment and for a sustainable future
Less chemicals, more happy creatures
We use 5000 litres less from environmentally harmful chemicals yearly, by replacing our dishwashing products with environmentally friendly, 100% biodegradable ones. Our highly efficient industrial dishwashers use less energy and water, and are a big help in reducing our environmental impact.
Less washing, no water waste
It is 24 tonnes of textile each year we DO NOT wash, as our buffet-table service system is completely textile-free. However, what we do send to the laundry is washed with environmentally friendly detergent by our partner.
Nothing is better than Hungarian trout
At Budapest Party Service, we strive to prepare our dishes using local ingredients wherever possible. We have reduced our environmental footprint by around 100 000 km by increasing the proportion of dishes made from local ingredients on our menus.
„We save” leftovers
We save 800 kg of food of different degrees of preparedness every year! In cooperation with the Budapest Bike Mafia, the Hungarian Food Bank Association, the Hungarian Charity Service of the Order of Malta, the Hungarian Blue Cross Association and other organisations, we strive to deliver the remaining food that is still fit for human consumption to people in need, thus helping them to have a hot meal.
Degradable is the future!
Every year, we selectively collect around 26 000 tetrapack cans and 19 000 pet bottles, in collaboration with Multiszint Ltd., our partner in the collection and recycling of these cans. Every year we spare our environment from 100 000 plastic straws. In 2020, half of this amount was already not requested by our guests for their drinks, and the remaining 50,000 were replaced with paper straws. At our outdoor events and team-building activities, 55,000 plastic forks, 40,000 plastic knives and 35,000 plastic spoons are NOT thrown away every year because we have replaced them with biodegradable ones. Our packaging materials, takeaway boxes for food prepared for guests, are all made from biodegradable, environmentally friendly materials.
To further reduce the amount of PET bottles, we prefer homemade syrups and lemonades when creating our beverage selection. Syrups are also sourced from local farms.
Our aim is to create a Zero Waste event.
The more we pay attention to the little details, the less waste we make, not only in terms of the packaging materials we use, but also in terms of the dishes we serve. Our guests don’t have to sacrifice the elegance of their event, they can enjoy the same high quality party service while their event is made sustainable.
Our sustainable goals are now also reflected in our menus, so our customers can make an informed choice. We use “planet pictograms” on the menu to indicate which menus fall into which categories according to our criteria.
We are re-designing our menus step-by-step, therefore it is possible that in the future they get a higher ranking.
What are our assessment criteria?
- When designing our menus, we are conscious of the seasonal availability of local ingredients, which is why we offer a seasonally changing selection. In our menu offerings, we give preference to ingredients grown in Hungary as much as possible, but of course we also offer international flavours for our guests in order to provide diversity and variety.
- Our farm-to-table approach helps us to buy more of our ingredients directly from the farmer and get them directly from the farmer to your plate. We are constantly looking for collaborative partners and local producers to broaden our reach.
- We have incorporated zero waste principles into our conceptual framework, aiming to limit the number of types of dishes on a menu from above, so that we can prepare a given number of portions of a given dish, optimising the quantity for the number of guests. With almost two decades of experience, we guarantee that we keep food waste at a low level at the end of the event, while allowing our guests to taste every single dish they want.
- We pay more attention to the amount of energy we use when preparing food. We have equipped our production kitchen with the most energy-efficient machines, so that we can reduce the amount of energy we use.
- Increasingly, we are expanding our range of meat-free and vegan options to help reduce our carbon footprint.
By considering the above criteria, we decide on the planet-pictogram that feature on our menus.
The basic requirement from 2022 is that the given menu receive at least „three planets”.
What does it mean?
At least 50% of the raw materials are sourced from domestic farms, preferably directly from the producer, with the lowest level of processing. For example, fresh meat, not frozen. The number of dishes on the menu should not exceed 19 and should include a minimum of 6 meat-free options in starters, salads and main courses. Increasing compliance in the criteria system will result in a higher number of planet pictograms. The dish that best meets the criteria will receive the highest score of “six planets”.