In order to drive the effort to reduce food loss and waste within the company, ThaiBev has opted to take up an aggressive target of zero food and waste to landfill by the year 2030. To achieve this, the company is following the guidance of the United Nations Environment Programme’s “Mapping and Measuring Food and Drink Waste” module, which applies the Food and Drink Material Hierarchy from Prevention, Optimization, Recycling, and Recovery to Disposal.

Within ThaiBev’s Beer, Spirits, and Non-Alcoholic Beverage Business Unit, all possible food loss is now classified as valuable by-products that can be further used as resources through out the manufacturing process. This in turn has led to the total volume of food loss and waste sent to landfills from these units being reduced to zero. This leaves ThaiBev’s fourth Business Unit, Food, as the major Business Unit that needs to finalize the food loss and waste issue.

The unit’s Food Loss and Waste Management Working Team, consisting of restaurant and factory directors and managers, was established at the end of 2020 to directly manage food loss and waste from both the company’s production site and retail outlets. In late 2021, the Food unit began a collaborative effort with partners like FEED Addition, ThaiBev Recycle (TBR), and HAVI to develop a comprehensive food loss and waste management project. This initiative encompasses the monitoring and management of food loss and waste and packaging waste, extending from production facilities to retail outlets – with the primary goal of preventing any food loss and waste from ending up in landfills. Furthermore, rather than merely donating these materials, the Food unit is actively exploring ways to generate income from its food loss and waste. Target 12.3 of the UN SDGs calls for halving food loss and waste per capita by 2030. ThaiBev’s goal of zero food waste to landfill by 2030 is therefore a lot more ambitious, requiring all food loss and waste generated by the company to be purposely used elsewhere. We have devised several strategies across our four Business Unit to reduce the total volume of food loss and waste generated, as well as the volume of food loss and waste discarded. These include campaigns to promote consumer awareness about reducing food waste and to sell eligible food loss and waste for repurposing. Furthermore, the company aims to work with all of its stakeholders to innovatively track and reduce food loss and waste throughout the value chain.

Food loss and food waste have related, but different meanings based on where they occur in the value chain. Food loss is the decreased quantity or quality of food from harvesting, transporting, and production, while food waste occurs at the retail and consumption levels. ThaiBev categorizes food loss and waste based on where they occur, using various systems of measurement. At production sites, food loss is accumulated, measured, categorized, and stored before being managed accordingly, which allows for the loss to be traced back to where it occurred. The company also uses other measuring methods, such as calculating the weight difference between full and empty truckloads during the retail distribution process. At the retail level, methods include weighing food waste at each restaurant and subsequently calculating the volume of waste by using the inventory system.

As an on-going operational process, food loss and waste data is compiled by data collectors at the food factory in Chon Buri Province and at the company’s restaurants across Thailand via the online Sustainability Data Management System (SDMS). Data is gathered from relevant departments and suppliers, summarized and analyzed collectively by data analysts and sent to the Project Management Office for further consideration. From the data, further discussions on food waste reduction efficiency are held to improve upon the existing process.

The company sorts food loss into different categories – including fish scraps, vegetable scraps, bread crumbs, and other food scraps – while tracking the monthly volume and disposal method for each type of waste, most of which is either being sold to suppliers or donated to the community as animal feed. This data is consistently maintained and monitored so that ThaiBev can track each type of food loss by weight. Any problems or suggestions arising during the process are relayed to the head of the project to review and take action. These procedures enable the minimization of losses in each process and maximize the reuse of repurposable resources which would otherwise be lost.

In addition, the company collaborates with its suppliers to ensure that raw materials meet the required quality standards and are not unnecessarily lost due to poor packaging or transport practices. ThaiBev is continuously working to improve data accuracy for food waste by collecting information from its retail stores, such as Shabushi, Oishi Ramen, and KFC. With gradual expansion of this program, it’s hoped that every ThaiBev brand will be covered in due course. To avoid potential safety and hygiene issues in restaurant settings, food waste – which expires in a very short time – must be dealt with swiftly. Therefore, the company works with logistics partners licensed in waste handling to ensure that food waste is collected and handled properly. ThaiBev is constantly exploring methods to create new value-added uses for food waste, including repurposing clean and high-quality unused ingredients into new products, and donating surplus food from its restaurant chains to organizations and communities.

In 2023, ThaiBev has employed consultants to help confirm the accuracy of collected food waste data; improve the existing data collection system; draft the food loss and waste policy and guidelines; monitor peers’ progress within the industry on food loss and waste; and formulate potential roadmaps to achieve the company’s long-term targets.

This consultation should serve to refine the company’s food waste project to be more systematically aligned and efficient.

In addition, ThaiBev has initiated discussions with landlords of the company’s retail stores about the possibility of collaboration on food waste management projects – with plans to start in Bangkok then gradually expand into other provinces. An example of such collaboration would be the landlords arranging for food waste storage areas and disposal methods that may generate value or revenue, while each tenant provides said landlords with the food waste from their respective daily operations for disposal – therefore resulting in a form of win-win relationship between the landlords and the tenants. ThaiBev collaborates with upstream and downstream partners to create innovative new products and programs to reduce food loss. Among these, the company’s key innovations are:

• Transforming vegetable waste into fertilizerl
• Reusing bread crumbs and salmon waste in new food productsl
• Donating raw material waste to be used as animal feedl
• Selling used oil to suppliers to produce biodiesel

Used cooking oil from ThaiBev’s Food Product Group operations is eligible to be repurposed into biodiesel, so the company actively seeks out suppliers who are willing to purchase its used cooking oil for this purpose. This results in value generation for both sides while also helping to mitigate climate change. In 2023, 1,316.36 metric tonnes of used cooking oil from restaurants were sold to produce biodiesel, generating income of around 35.23 million Baht. In this program, surplus food is donated directly to people living in disadvantaged circumstances. The QSR of Asia, or QSA – ThaiBev’s Food Product Group business operation overseeing the management of the company’s KFC restaurant branches – provides surplus food to ten vocational institutes across Thailand, including Baan Metta (Nakhon Ratchasima Province), Baan Wangthong (Phitsanulok Province), Baan Maharaj (Pathum Thani Province), and Baan Tabkwang (Saraburi Province). In 2023, KFC restaurants under QSA’s operations donated a total of 10,019.06 kilograms of high-quality food, representing a 58.55% increase over the previous year.

KFC Harvest	2021	2022	2023
Donation (kg.)	8,454.61	6,319.06	10,019.06

ThaiBev’s Food Product Group works with the SOS Foundation to donate food surplus to various vulnerable communities. The foundation works with restaurants to pick up food surplus (either raw or cooked) that is still of high quality and edible. Restaurants are given instructions on how to store the food – including whether containers are necessary, and what food categories are accepted – to ensure the safety of those receiving the food.

In 2023, the project has expanded into 31 restaurants under the Food Product Group (15 branches of Shabushi, 6 branches of Oishi Eaterium, 2 branches of Nikuya, and 8 branches of KFC). A total of 3,255.79 kilograms of food surplus was donated, which is equivalent to 24,342 meals and is worth approximately 270,073 Baht. Launched on 1 July, 2022, at Oishi Ramen, Oishi Biztoro, and Kakashi, this food waste awareness campaign has a simple but strong message. Customers can inform the restaurant’s staff to leave out any ingredient that they don’t want from their orders.

In this way, customers can help the company reduce food waste, while simultaneously increasing their satisfaction with their orders. Staff informs customers about the campaign when they order, along with in-store signage to further promote the campaign. The campaign is intended to raise customer awareness about the issue of food waste in their daily activities.