As FoodService Director’s self-designated green nerd, it naturally was my duty to take in as much green education as possible during May’s National Restaurant Association Show in Chicago. After my first session of the show, I walked into the hallway, eager to see how sustainability was being applied throughout the event.
The first thing I encountered was a table covered in packaged snacks. Sigh.
With tens of thousands of attendees and immeasurable tons of food moving through McCormick Place during the four-day show, it would be unreasonable to expect green perfection. But I definitely observed more than a few ways the conference could have upped its sustainability game—as well as some successes.
Suggestions
Embrace the tasting tray
This is one of my favorite parts of attending the annual Chicago Gourmet festival in Millennium Park. Upon entering the event, you are handed a thick plastic plate, leaving one hand free to snag snacks and carry them around without wasting a zillion little tasting plates. This would be an easy concept to translate to the NRA Show: Exhibitors just need to invest in tongs for placing bites. Plus, having one plate loaded up with food might cut down on the taking-one-bite-and-tossing-it culture, which leads me to my next thought…
Invest in compost bins
This was perhaps the most surprising omission from the show. No matter how careful you might be not to take too much food, there’ll be something that grosses you out or that you’re too full to finish. McCormick Place’s waste hauler already sorts cardboard, paper, plastic and aluminum—would it be too much to add composting ?
Turn down the AC
I get that the chefs and equipment churning out all those millions of tiny samples easily could become overheated. But I’ve never gone to the show and not been absolutely freezing. There has to be a happy medium that still keeps attendees, exhibitors and equipment functionally cool.
Successes
Donation of leftover food
Through a partnership with the Greater Chicago Food Depository, the show has donated more than 1 million pounds of samples and product to shelters in the past 10 years, says Leana Salamah, the NRA’s senior director of convention marketing, communications & programming. In 2016 alone, 50,000 pounds of food were donated, which translates to roughly 35,000 to 37,000 meals, she says.
Saving the trees
While it might create longer pickup lines, the move from plastic badge holders to paper badges printed on-site has saved 67,000 mailing envelopes, Salamah says. The NRA also is printing fewer show guides and encouraging attendees to download its free app, she says.