Sands China Ltd. are doubling down against food waste following a successful reduction programme which reduced waste levels by over 60%. The project was a perfect marriage of people power and technology, with teams adopting new Artificial Intelligence technology, Winnow Vision, to measure and manage waste.
The team at Sands China Ltd. are passionate about protecting the planet - The Sands ECO360 global sustainability strategy is designed to help minimize environmental impact, and it reflects a vision to lead the way in sustainable building development and resort operations. The idea is aspirational, but the delivery is through Sands team members who are motivated to take action.
Food waste reduction is a strategic priority for Sands, and the teams at The Venetian Macao and The Parisian Macao have been working together on food waste minimisation since early 2019. The Team have worked to combat plate waste via the Clean Plate Challenge which saw 97,000 clean plates returned in a bid to reduce plate waste. As well as becoming early adopters of new Artificial Intelligence enabled technology, Winnow Vision, which 'learns to see' food being wasted. In just 6 months, the teams have reduced the food waste overproduction by up to 63%, and they're just getting started.
Meridith Beaujean, Executive Director of Sustainability, Sands China Ltd. says “Food Waste reduction has been an important goal since we started the Clean Plate Challenge campaign a few years ago. Data monitoring was present but challenging. With the implementation of Winnow technology, we go one step further in our data analytics. It allows us to easily track the data and analyse it on the Winnow hub platform. Our kitchen teams can adjust the production to reduce the waste we produce as seen in the results from our pilot projects at Venetian and Parisian Team Member Restaurants. It helps us make decisions on the food to source, produce so as to follow our Company’s sustainability strategy to reduce its food waste stream.”
Food waste is one of the largest global issues with 1/3 of all food getting wasted. Winnow is pleased to be working with Sands China Ltd. in the fight against food waste and supporting its commitment to becoming more sustainable. Innovation is key for Sands China Ltd. who were early adopters of AI-enabled technology Winnow Vision.
Philip Chong, Vice President of Food and Beverage, Sands China Ltd. says "Wasting food is consuming our precious energy, water and land. A lot of people may not understand that because of the lack of information and data. Our food waste journey will guide and educate team members to sustain our food program."
The project forms part of a new Science-Based Target, pledging to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 17.5% by 2025. Food waste contributes around 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions (source: FAO) and is ranked as the number one intervention to mitigate against the catastrophic effects of climate change (source: Project Drawdown). Sands’ example shows that with a united team, led by senior leadership and supported by technology, it is possible to make significant improvements which will deliver big impacts for our climate we so desperately need.
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