Recently the National Restaurant Association surveyed 500 restaurant owners and operators nationwide during March and April, 2011. Consumer findings are based on a nationally representative sample of 1,010 American adults surveyed March 10-13, 2011. The findings were not particularly surprising; three out of five restaurant patrons surveyed indicated that they preferred to eat at establishments that had recycling programs in place.
An article posted by Urban Mining can be found here.
Some highlights of the study included:
- 65% Â of restaurateurs currently have a recycling program in place; 13% participate in composting programs.
- 74% of restaurateurs who recycle do so in the kitchen and office areas; 43% have a program in the dining room and other customer-facing areas.
- Nearly three out of four (72%) restaurant operators use products made from recycled materials; the most common of these items were bags, paper products and food containers.
- 60% of consumers say they prefer to visit a restaurant that recycles.
- A strong majority of consumers (85%) say they sort recyclables in quickservice restaurants if receptacles are provided.
- About half of consumers (51%) say they are willing to pay a little more for menu items at a restaurant that recycles.
Of course oftentimes what people say they will do (in regards to paying more) often differs to the reality of the decision made at the time of purchase, so some of these statements actually require further empirical research or qualification to ascertain the actual willingness to pay more and the actual difference in pricing that would be acceptable to the consumer.
In the area of used oil collection we find the majority of restaurants do seem to have relationships with oil collectors. Our efforts in this area of late have focused on determining how we can differentiate our services and provide greater value to those restaurants and collectors that do make the choice of using Promethean as their service provider or oil purchaser.
Make it a better place!
Todd
