Leading hospitality groups including Hilton, Accor, Marriott, Mandarin Oriental and IKEA are now collectively saving more than $100 million a year by cutting food waste across their kitchens—enabled by AI-powered food waste tracking from Winnow.
The milestone reflects growing momentum in the sector to address one of hospitality’s most persistent challenges. Globally, food waste represents an estimated $1 trillion in economic loss each year, with $147 billion attributed to surplus food in the U.S. foodservice sector alone (source: UNEP, ReFED). Winnow’s mission is to help the hospitality industry recover $1 billion of that loss by giving chefs the tools to take action.
How Winnow’s Technology Works
Founded in the UK in 2013, Winnow equips kitchens with connected hardware and AI that tracks what food is discarded, when, and why. This data helps teams adjust production, improve processes, and run more efficient operations.
The company’s technology is now used in thousands of kitchens across nearly 100 countries. Its latest innovation, Throw & Go, allows teams to capture food waste completely touch-free—making measurement faster and easier, particularly in high-volume kitchens.
Chefs at the Heart of the Movement
But it’s chefs—not technology—who are leading the change.
“This milestone is a tribute to the chefs who are making food waste reduction part of their daily craft,” said Marc Zornes, CEO and Co-Founder of Winnow. “They are the ones designing menus, rethinking processes, and leading their teams to cook more consciously. Our role is to give them the data to make that easier.”
Since 2024, Winnow has partnered with zero-waste expert Chef Vojtech Vegh to raise awareness among chefs and inspire creative ways to repurpose surplus ingredients. His work reflects a broader cultural shift in kitchens, where food waste prevention is increasingly seen as a creative opportunity rather than an operational burden.
Global Hospitality Leaders Setting New Standards
Global operators embracing this shift include:
- Hilton, whose Green Ramadan 2025 initiative reduced plate waste by 26% across 45 hotels in 14 countries, supported by Winnow’s AI and resources developed with UNEP West Asia.
- Accor, with over 200 hotels using Winnow worldwide, collectively saving one meal every six seconds.
- Guckenheimer, a leading U.S. foodservice provider, which announced a 64% reduction in food waste since 2022—saving nearly one million meals annually.
- Mandarin Oriental, which reduced food waste by 36% in four pilot hotels within six months and is now rolling out Winnow across its 40+ properties.
Emma Banks, Hilton’s Vice President of Food & Drink Strategy and Development for EMEA, said: “Reducing food waste is both a moral imperative and a strategic opportunity for our industry… These chefs are preventing 4.7M meals from being wasted each year.”
Coline Pont, Chief Sustainability Officer at Accor, added: “Reducing food waste is a key lever in our journey towards more sustainable hospitality… helping us prevent thousands of meals from being wasted across the globe.”
Impact at Scale: Food, Carbon and Cost Savings
In total, kitchens using Winnow are preventing 28,000 tonnes of food waste every year—equivalent to two meals saved every second.
This translates to 122,000+ tonnes of CO₂e emissions avoided, equal to removing 28,000 cars from the road for an entire year (source: epa.gov).
Regulation, Rising Prices and the Growing Need for Measurement
As food prices rise and regulations tighten, food waste is no longer seen as inevitable.
- The EU has proposed binding targets to cut food waste by 2030.
- Spain passed legislation in April 2025 requiring hospitality businesses to implement food waste prevention plans, with enforcement beginning in 2026.
Measurement is rapidly becoming essential for compliance—while also proving to be one of the most effective cost-saving tools. Winnow’s data shows that although most commercial kitchens waste 5–15% of food purchased, reductions after measurement typically exceed 50%.
A Step Toward a Billion-Dollar Sustainability Goal
The journey to $100 million saved annually is a major step toward Winnow’s long-term mission: helping the hospitality industry prevent $1 billion in food waste every year.
The progress demonstrates what’s possible when chefs are empowered to lead the change—and why food waste remains one of the clearest, most actionable opportunities for sustainability in hospitality today.
