Major Hotel Groups Sign Zero Food Waste Pledge

Fourteen of the world's largest hotel groups, representing over 35,000 properties globally, have signed a landmark Zero Food Waste Pledge committing them to eliminate landfill food waste from their operations by 2030, in what industry sustainability leaders are calling the most significant collective commitment the sector has made on food waste.

The pledge, facilitated by the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance and co-signed at a ceremony in Geneva, requires signatories to measure total food waste across their portfolios within 18 months, publish annual progress reports, and meet interim targets of 30 percent reduction by 2027.

Food waste represents one of the largest and most tractable sustainability challenges in hospitality. Studies estimate that hotels waste between 28 and 35 percent of all food purchased, a figure that translates into both significant cost and material environmental impact. Addressing it requires a combination of menu engineering, purchasing discipline, improved storage and inventory systems, and systematic diversion of unavoidable waste to composting and anaerobic digestion.

Among the signatories are Marriott International, Hilton, IHG, Hyatt, Accor, and Radisson Hotel Group. The participation of companies at this scale represents a meaningful acceleration in the industry's approach to food sustainability, which has previously relied primarily on property-level initiatives without coordinated group-wide commitment.

Sustainable Hospitality Alliance CEO Glenn Mandziuk acknowledged the ambition of the target. "Eliminating landfill food waste by 2030 is genuinely challenging," he said. "But the technology exists, the operational frameworks exist, and now the collective will exists. Our job is to help members execute at pace."

Technology partners including Winnow and Leanpath have confirmed expanded partnerships with several signatories, providing AI-powered food waste measurement systems that will form the measurement backbone of the pledge.