Home NEWS Global The PLEDGE on Food Waste certifies 55 Marriott Hotels

The PLEDGE on Food Waste certifies 55 Marriott Hotels

Mar 10, 2025

September 2023 saw Marriott International UK, Ireland, and Nordics (UKIN) set the ambitious goal to have all 55 managed properties be certified by The PLEDGE on Food Waste.

To achieve this, more than 120 Chefs, Directors of F&B, and Hotel Managers have been trained by LightBlue during a two-day workshop in Edinburgh, getting equipped with the mindset, know-how, and tools to effectively implement and reach The PLEDGE certification.

Adopting a holistic approach, the hotels first formed their Food Lovers’ Committee, then implemented new best practices in accordance with the 95 criteria of The PLEDGE. These included:

Designing and adopting a food waste reduction policy, shared with all stakeholders
Training their employees and raising their awareness using multiple touch points (canteen, on-the-job training, etc.)
Diligently capturing and analyzing food waste data
Reinforcing and embedding new SOPs at critical food waste generation points, such as receiving, storage, forecasting, mise-en-place, buffet, and service
Engaging with guests to encourage them to reduce plate waste
Exploring existing solutions to divert the remaining food waste from landfills.

To verify the 55 hotels’ compliance with the standard, each property went through third-party audits conducted by SGS UK and Audit Diagnostic Solutions Tourism.

Upon being certified by The PLEDGE on Food Waste: 53 hotels obtained GOLD, and two hotels SILVER. This collective effort resulted in a remarkable 25% reduction in food waste per cover, equivalent to over 215,900 meals and 415 tonnes of carbon emissions being avoided. On the culinary craft side, 121 zero-food-waste dishes have been added to the menus.

“We’re incredibly pleased to see Marriott UKIN pave the way on the critical issue of food waste in hospitality. 12 years of expertise in food waste prevention is encapsulated in this project, combining technical capacity building, joint strategy, tailored support, and third-party certification. We believe this success will inspire more industry leaders to become PLEDGERs too,” Marco Sandri, Global Manager of The PLEDGE on Food Waste.

The PLEDGE on Food Waste is the leading international third-party certification for restaurants, hotels, and cafeterias to reduce food waste, save on costs, and gain a competitive edge.

Learn more about the initiative here: www.thepledgeonfoodwaste.org.