Trash to Treasure: Unveiling the Hidden Rewards of Recycling in the Hotel Industry

1. Introduction

Although the negative effects of food waste (FW) have previously been well documented, there is currently cause for concern due to these consequences (Fafouti et al., 2023) According to estimates from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), one-third of the 1.3 billion tons of food produced for human use each year ends up in landfills or in trash cans (FAO, 2013). Understanding the overlap between food insecurity and food waste, the UN integrated sustainability goals with the intention of lowering global food waste (FW) generation during consumption. This has also significantly decreased the incidence of FW in the production and distribution phases (Alreahi et al., 2023). 189.2 million people in India suffer from undernourishment, according to the FAO (Ramkumar, 2020). Food loss and waste are just two of the many indirect environmental implications of food production's reliance on resources (Elshaer et al., 2022). In an age when sustainability is more than just a phrase, the hotel business is at the forefront of efforts to reduce its environmental impact (Mehraj, Qureshi, et al., 2023a). The pursuit of eco-friendliness and resource conservation has encouraged hotels to investigate novel trash management and recycling strategies. This chapter digs into the varied world of hotel recycling, bringing light on the frequently ignored joys and benefits that emerge when waste is transformed into treasure. Recycling has far-reaching ramifications in the hotel industry, ranging from cost savings and reduced environmental impact to improved guest experiences (El Alaoui et al., 2023) This introduction lays the groundwork for a thorough examination of how recycling methods might transform the traditional hospitality approach into a sustainable, responsible, and profitable venture(Pham Phu et al., 2019). Hotels are under increasing pressure to examine their environmental impact as concerns about climate change grow and the necessity of sustainable practices grows. Recognizing the need for change, many forward-thinking hoteliers have launched recycling programs that go beyond the fundamentals of sorting paper, plastic, and glass (Salama & Abdelsalam, 2021). The purpose of this chapter is to identify the hidden benefits of recycling in the hotel sector. We will emphasize not just the environmental benefits of responsible waste management, but also the financial incentives and guest engagement benefits that come with it by reviewing the experiences of several hotels and their recycling efforts. In the following sections, we will delve into the complexities of these benefits and the strategies used by hotels to maximize their recycling efforts. By doing so, we hope to persuade hoteliers, environmentalists, and sustainability activists to see the significant potential that recycling has in the hospitality industry. Together, we can turn waste into treasure and set the hospitality sector on a path to a more sustainable and prosperous future.