FOOD & DRINK
FACTORING IN FOG
Considering kitchen equipment that will make your clients’ businesses run more efficiently, keep them compliant and make a healthy return on investment, can pay off in the long term. Fat, oil and grease (FOG) management systems are the perfect example of this, suggests Lee Shelton of Filta.
Over 10m tonnes of food and drink waste are produced each year in the UK, according to the government, and it’s believed more than 70% of drain blockages within a commercial kitchen are caused by the build-up of FOG generated from washing pots, pans and plates, blockages, causing kitchen closures, rancid odours and unwanted pests.
The good news is that caterers are making measures to bring down food waste, but, as a facilities manager, you also need to consider how they are going to eliminate the by- products of the food they serve, namely the FOG primarily produced in cooking. This is proving to be deadly for the environment and costing caterers more and more money.
Under the Water Industry Act (1999), there are regulations governing the disposal of FOG and preventing it from entering drains and sewers and we are seeing more instances of prosecutions and steep fines for complacency. So-called ‘fatbergs’, a phenomenon whereby fat mixes with the likes of wet wipes to create fat monsters that result in sewer blockages, are becoming a growing problem and caterers are increasingly coming under fire for the part they play. This criticism doesn’t solely stem from the health and safety inspectors, but from water companies striving to keep the sewer systems clear.
Last year, in only the third case of its kind in the UK, an operator was fined nearly £10,000 for pouring fat used in cooking down the drain, causing a huge blockage that resulted in the sewer overflowing into a local watercourse.
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On top of this, emergency call-outs and having to descale the pipework can set you back thousands of pounds and there is the ripple effect of toilet and bathroom sinks being blocked, while kitchen closures can also have an impact on the ability of staff to perform their normal duties.
This can all be prevented by better grease management, a core pillar of any effective food waste management strategy. The challenge is that there is a distinct lack of understanding in the grease management system marketplace and, often, it’s seen as a tick in the box, not a technical solution.
There’s not only a dizzying array of grease management systems out there, but a lack of clarity on sizing a system
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