Systems-practice framework: An integrated approach for foodservice management

Abstract

Aim: There is increasing pressure on foodservice organisations to improve the sustainability of their operations and to do so practitioners must be equipped with appropriate tools. In this paper, a tool to guide management strategies for pro-environmental behaviour change is introduced. The tool is based on a new framework that combines two existing models: the widely used foodservice 'systems model' and a model from sociology proven to be effective for understanding sustainable practices, the 'social practice model'. Methods: This new hybrid 'systems-practice' framework is applied to an ethnographic case study, using document analyses, observations, focus groups and interviews, to investigate food waste in hospital kitchens. The present case study illustrates the practical implications of employing this approach and enhances the external validity of the proposed framework. Results: The present study showed how the social practice model added to the existing systems model emphasised the role of foodservice personnel for generating pro-environmental practices, and thus offered a more people-based approach to foodservice management. Conclusions: The case study data provided evidence for the efficacy of a systems-practice approach to foodservice. This is especially relevant for encouraging a more environmentally aware behavioural orientation within foodservice systems. Based on easy-to-follow steps presented in the adjoined 'application of the systems-practice guide', practitioners can use the framework to either understand practices that already exist in their operations, with the purpose being to ensure further systemisation of positive practices, or to effect change by creating new sustainable practices and phasing out existing unsustainable practices.