Waste Watcher Profile - April 2009
Nancy Darbut, Director of Food & Nutrition
North Memorial Medical Center, Robbinsdale, MN
About Nancy Darbut
Nancy Darbut is the Foodservice Director for North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale, Minnesota. She has been at North Memorial for the past 5 years with ARAMARK, after spending almost 20 years in foodservice.LeanPath Waste Tracking Tools
North Memorial has been using the ValuWaste program for 3 ½ years. Her first impression of the program was that "it is an excellent program for saving money on food cost and engaging the work force in quality improvement." The Value Waste program "exceeded my wildest expectations almost immediately - the program was very revealing - we had a 48% reduction in food waste the first year, we learned a lot, and we had fun as well. The fun is important."Results
When asked for specific examples of changes they have made as a result of the program. She stated that "I cannot remember all the specific changes we made, now it’s just a way of life here. We never buy croutons for the salad bar or for baked stuffing anymore, we use our own bread to do that, which save thousands of dollars per year. We made many improvements in our soups by not adding noodles and rice until the end. We learned that certain foods are better on a seasonal basis, such as Chili is only produced in the winter months and not in summer. We track and adjust every week. We noticed that we were throwing away several gallons of frozen yogurt every end of the week and made changes to that process so we were not wasting such an expensive product. The list goes on and on."Making changes such as these to their everyday production they have "reduced food purchases approximately 1% per year, each year." However considering that food prices have increased in cost of by about 4-6% each year – “that is quite an achievement”.
Team Engagement
"Success is important- saving money, improving team work and communication, engaging staff to come up with new ideas, improving quality, these are all the best parts." Engaging the staff and watching them take ownership is very rewarding and valuable. “When your staff cares about and understands that 'wasting food costs money' you will see a major shift in your workplace. The process of reducing waste spills over into many other areas. Engaging the staff is key."Recommendation
Her advice to other foodservice operators? “Dive in with both feet and the sooner you start, the sooner you will save money, improve your bottom line and make your customer happy.”View a CBS News story on North Memorial and their use of LeanPath food waste tracking tools
