With an equipment-wide update to Energy Star qualifications coming down the pipe early next year, the Food Service Technology Center has been actively working on developing specifications for commercial water heaters, a new venture for the industry and for the FSTC.

In an effort to reduce the massive amount of energy used to heat water, The Cheesecake Factory enlisted the help of Sun Light & Power, a Berkeley, Calif.-based firm that designs and builds solar panels for companies, to install the light-catching units on its rooftop.

Trayless dining took the college foodservice sector by storm a few years ago, just as the sustainability movement began taking shape. Trayless dining means less food waste (because students are not piling on mounds of food they won't end up eating), in addition to potentially less energy and water use (because trays aren't run 24/7 through a flight-type dishmachine).

Some tips from Greg Christian on how to create a sustainable kitchen with the proper equipment.

The country's move toward a more sustainable food system will impact kitchen design and foodservice equipment specification in the future.

Imagine walking into a restaurant or building where an entire wall brings light to a room using a series of panels dim enough to stare at comfortably and sophisticated enough to change colors, display images or even play videos.

Ranges have a unique position in the energy efficiency conversation. As it is, there really is no such thing as an "energy-efficient range," per se. In fact, no Energy Star rating exists for ranges and some states don't offer rebates for this equipment. But with the right specification and maintenance, foodservice operators can achieve energy efficiency and savings with their ranges.

It should be as simple as it sounds. Turn something on when you need it. Turn it off when you don't. Yet for decades kitchen workers have done exactly the opposite. In fact, even the most prestigious of culinary schools have taught future cooks to fire up the grills the moment they walk in the restaurant door, even if service doesn't begin for hours.

An independent liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine, Bowdoin College takes its motto, "The College and the Common Good," to heart in all departments, including and perhaps especially in dining services. Known for high quality that consistently lands it at or near the top of the Princeton Review's annual ranking of best college food, Bowdoin's dining program touts not only great eats but a pacesetting, comprehensive portfolio of sustainability initiatives as well.

Located in picturesque Burlington, the University of Vermont (UVM) is a leader on many sustainability fronts: One of the first universities to end the sale of bottled water, UVM's Sodexo-operated dining program also touts extensive pre- and post-consumer recycling, trayless dining, composting of food scraps, a student-run organic garden, steadily increasing purchases of locally produced "real" foods, sustainable seafood, biodegradable disposables and a partnership that recycles nearly 200 gallons of used fryer oil into biofuel each month. In early 2011, the school added another important element to its sustainability program: Eco-Ware, a reusable takeout container initiative that, after

Ice machines are a paradoxical bunch. They can be the forgotten workhorse in a kitchen and often come in last on equipment purchasing priorities. But at the same time, they open up incredible opportunities for total-kitchen energy savings because of their improved efficiencies.

Though ventilation may not seem that interesting a topic on the surface, this is precisely the area of the kitchen that has seen the most technological advancements in terms of energy efficiency and design.

Washington, D.C.'s Bread & Brew proves that small, independent restaurants can afford to go green, too.

Although there continues to be much debate over specifications, verification testing and more, the common bond that unites everyone working with Energy Star for the commercial foodservice industry is a strong desire to see this iconic symbol for conservation remain relevant.

Planning, developing and implementing composting programs continues to get easier for foodservice operators because more operators are electing to take these environmentally friendly steps. As role models for their peers, they help both commercial and noncommercial operators follow in that path.

Greenwashing, or exaggerating the environmentally friendly selling points of a product, happens in all avenues of foodservice, and is no longer the exclusive domain of organically produced or farm fresh ingredients.

There are pros and cons to everything in life — and applying for LEED certification on a project is no different.

Just five years ago the availability of sustainability and other cost calculators was scarce. These days, though, the scope of calculators has grown exponentially, ranging from calculators for specific equipment types to others designed to determine energy, water and total life cycle cost savings. They’ve also become more accurate.

When it comes to sustainable foodservice equipment, there's been plenty of discussion about energy- and water-saving items. But what happens to foodservice equipment at the beginning and end of its service life and how the manufacturer creates, ships and, in some cases, renews or recycles is just as important in the sustainability discussion. Those points in between — and we don't just mean cooking and operating — count.

When it comes to energy-efficient griddles, the energy-efficient part really varies by operation and need. "Griddles are heavily cost-driven and it's difficult to justify the strategies that make them more efficient," says David Zabrowski, director of engineering at the Food Service Technology Center (FSTC) in San Ramon, Calif.

When foodservice professionals discuss waste management, the conversation generally turns to composting, recycling, and donating excess food — anything that happens after the food has been wasted. But what about preventing the waste from occurring in the first place?

To reuse or dispose? That is the proverbial and, in some cases, literal million-dollar question for foodservice operators, from the smallest quick-serve restaurant to the highest volume K-12 or college cafeteria.

In the grand scheme of commercial kitchen energy use, convection ovens don't pose a huge drain on costs compared to refrigeration or even fryers. But that doesn't mean their impact on total kitchen energy use is negligible. In fact, the Food Service Technology Center is diligently working to revise standards for ovens, including rack, conveyor and combination units.

When it comes to water conservation, there are only so many times one can repeat the same old tips and tricks: install aerators on handsinks, use pre-rinse spray valves at dishwashing stations, buy water-saving warewashers. Most of us get it already.

While the concept isn't new, rainwater collection continues to gain acceptance among foodservice operators.

Going "green" is no easy task. But cultivating a "green" culture, meaning working to get an operation's entire staff, management team, vendors and associates in line with sustainability initiatives in order to create a more viable business over time — well, that's an even more challenging task.

When foodservice operators elect to make changes to their businesses, many of them choose to start small or with the least complex aspect of the project and move forward from there. Well, when it came to implementing a recycling program for its units here in the United States, Pret A Manger took the opposite approach.

In researching its article "The Truth and Consequences about Energy Star," FE&S requested an interview with a representative from Energy Star and the Environmental Protection Agency. Unfortunately, the EPA could not arrange an interview but its media relations department did provide answers via email to the six questions submitted by FE&S. Below please find the EPA's responses to FE&S' questions about the Energy Star program.

Everyone knows about Energy Star. What most foodservice professionals don't realize is that the program is about to undergo some significant changes that could impact the industry.