Friday 03 / May / 2024
Muscat: More food is wasted in the Holy Month of Ramadan than in any other month, with hotels, resorts and households being the major contributors, campaigners and environmental experts say.
“Middle East nations are acknowledged as being the world’s top food wasters, and during Ramadan the situation takes a turn for the worse,” Salman Zafar, founder of environmental think-tank EcoMENA, told Times of Oman.
“There is no reliable information on trends in food waste during Ramadan in Oman. In my opinion, Oman is no different from other GCC nations when it comes to generating food waste. A steep increase in food waste is witnessed among the local population, as well as expatriates during the holy month,” he said.
About 26 per cent of the total municipal solid waste in Oman comprises food waste and associated matter.
An average Omani family discards about one-third of all food prepared within their household, according to a study released by Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) in 2012. It is said an Omani household usually throws away 70 Omani riyals worth of surplus food every month.
“It’s not just a waste of food, it’s food that others are deprived of,” green campaigner Nasser al-Kindi told Times of Oman.
Al Kindi, who is also the founder of Clean Up Oman, a non-governmental organisation, said all religions advise against wasting food.
“In Islam, which is the official religion, wasting food is strictly prohibited, especially when people are suffering from famine, starvation and poverty,” he said, adding, “We are an arid country and water is a scarce resource. Most of the food can’t be grown here. A lot of drinking water is also wasted, which is part of food waste.”
Al Kindi noted that many hotels are not following their social responsibility policies “efficiently”.
“There are many hotels in the world where they have adopted some type of measures where untouched food is not thrown away, but distributed among the poor. It’s time that something like this is established in Oman, too,” he said.
A psychological trend?
“It’s psychological, actually. People tend to cook more and they throw a lot of food away during Ramadan. Obviously it is a clear and natural trend. Actually, it could be an interesting study to do in Oman,” Mahad Said Baawain, Director, Center of Environmental Studies and Research, SQU, told Times of Oman.
Some resorts and hotels say they have measures in place to avoid wasting untouched food this Ramadan.
“It is true that there is a large amount of over-production of food in hotels and restaurants during this period, and to combat this we ensure that all chefs are aware of the projected number of guests we cater for on any specific day or meal period,” Rebecca Platt, Director of Communications, Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa, told Times of Oman.
She said the resort tries to prepare dishes at the last minute and in smaller amounts to combat excessive wastage, “and which also ensures that guests receive fresh and flavourful food.”
Many hotels and resorts in the Sultanate have launched offers for private Ramadan events or corporate Iftar (post-dusk meal) and Sahoor (pre-dawn meals) parties. Campaigners fear this triggers massive food waste, unless methods are adopted to reduce food from going into garbage bins.
Grand chefs counselled
In some GCC nations, some hotels and resorts deliver untouched food to the poor or labourers.
“In terms of the production of food for the various buffets, we closely monitor guest trends. Obviously, there are peak times and slower times during the holy month, in terms of eating habits. So we base our production on this, to which we have minimal waste,” Platt said.
She noted that they have a very comprehensive food safety management system at Shangri-La and any food which has been in a buffet or prepared for a specific amount of time has to be discarded.
“Hence, this is the reason we minimize the production, in line with our business,” she said.
Officials of Al Bustan Palace, a Ritz-Carlton hotel, said they launched a specific Ramadan programme two years ago and have been successfully limiting food wasted during the holy month.
“We’ve a programme in place where we try to work with our executive chef over limiting or reducing the food wasted during Ramadan. We have been working on this programme for the past two years,” a senior official of Al Bustan Palace, who wanted to remain anonymous, told Times of Oman.
Hotel officials say they have given special advisories to their staff regarding food preparations and delivery.
“We are preparing buffets catering for the numbers of thosewho have booked or reserved in advance, with a certain amount reserved for walk-ins. So the wastage is minimal. In addition, any food cooked too much will be given to our team member restaurant,” Christoph Schleissing, General Manager of Millennium Resort Mussanah, told Times of Oman.
“The point is that many forget what Ramadan is all about. Fasting is to clear the body and mind. Ramadan is about sharing and giving to those less fortunate. So wasting is the absolute opposite. I just remind my people about the essence of Ramadan,” he added.
