sustainable development and profitability in the Finnish restaurant industry
Mulenga, Mpafya (2015)
Mulenga, Mpafya
Laurea-ammattikorkeakoulu
2015
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2015052710788
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2015052710788
Tiivistelmä
Environmental sustainability in the food industry is often concerned with the provision of organic products and recycling. The emphasis on organically produced supplies though viewed as an environmentally sustainable means of food production to meet the ends of the green revolution should not obscure consideration of profitability in the business. Making profit is a business goal, while environmental sustainability is an ethical issue whose practice is subject to the balancing act of being profitable and still promoting the values of environmental sustainability.
This thesis will analyse the challenges of profit making within an environmentally conscious business model in the case of Finnish restaurants in the Helsinki metropolitan area. The thesis answers the fundamental question of to what extent particular restaurants practice environ- mental sustainability (green business) while looking to cut cost and make profit. I have answered this question at the end of a rigorous research study carried out in support of my hypothesis that profitability stands as the biggest challenge to environmentally friendly practices in the restaurant industry. The target group included a school, a hotel, a fast food and a private owned restaurant. The research area focused on food, waste, water and energy management in the target restaurants.
The study results found that restaurants around the Helsinki metropolitan area are practicing green business by offering local and organic foods as a way of cutting down their food miles, they have set up waste management systems to account and sort out the waste produced during their activities, they are purchasing energy saving equipment’s to cut down on energy waste, and they have also started to install water intensive equipment’s such as dipper wells used in the kitchens to save water costs. Profit gains from green practices still remain a big challenge which has resulted into restaurants looking at environmental sustainability as a way of reducing cost than making profit.
This thesis will analyse the challenges of profit making within an environmentally conscious business model in the case of Finnish restaurants in the Helsinki metropolitan area. The thesis answers the fundamental question of to what extent particular restaurants practice environ- mental sustainability (green business) while looking to cut cost and make profit. I have answered this question at the end of a rigorous research study carried out in support of my hypothesis that profitability stands as the biggest challenge to environmentally friendly practices in the restaurant industry. The target group included a school, a hotel, a fast food and a private owned restaurant. The research area focused on food, waste, water and energy management in the target restaurants.
The study results found that restaurants around the Helsinki metropolitan area are practicing green business by offering local and organic foods as a way of cutting down their food miles, they have set up waste management systems to account and sort out the waste produced during their activities, they are purchasing energy saving equipment’s to cut down on energy waste, and they have also started to install water intensive equipment’s such as dipper wells used in the kitchens to save water costs. Profit gains from green practices still remain a big challenge which has resulted into restaurants looking at environmental sustainability as a way of reducing cost than making profit.