HOW WRI REDUCED ITS OFFICE FOOD WASTE BY MORE THAN 75 PERCENT

WRI implemented a food waste reduction strategy in its Washington, DC office, reducing daily food waste from 14 lbs to under 3 lbs within one year. Following the 'Target, Measure, Act' mantra, the organization adopted SDG Target 12.3, conducted quarterly waste composition audits, and addressed three primary waste hotspots: catered event leftovers, unfinished staff lunches, and forgotten refrigerator food. Key actions included reducing catering orders by up to 25 percent for groups of 20 or more, implementing a composting program, and improving refrigerator cleaning communications. These efforts resulted in a reduction of food waste by more than 75 percent and a decrease in landfill contributions.

• WRI reduced food waste in its Washington, DC office by more than 75 percent in one year, decreasing the amount sent to landfills from 14 lbs per day to just under 3 lbs per day.
• The organization identified three primary sources of food waste: leftovers from catered events, unfinished staff lunches, and food forgotten in office refrigerators.
• To mitigate catering waste, WRI reduced order quantities by up to 25 percent for groups of 20 or more people, as the fear of insufficient food was found to be unfounded.
• WRI implemented a composting program for unfinished lunches and coordinated with building janitors to ensure food cleared from refrigerators is composted rather than sent to the trash.
• The organization established a measurement system consisting of quarterly waste composition analyses where volunteers sort and weigh waste categories using a digital scale.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). HOW WRI REDUCED ITS OFFICE FOOD WASTE BY MORE THAN 75 PERCENT. https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/how-wri-reduced-office-food-waste.pdf

Chicago

World Resources Institute. HOW WRI REDUCED ITS OFFICE FOOD WASTE BY MORE THAN 75 PERCENT. n.d. https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/how-wri-reduced-office-food-waste.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=HOW WRI REDUCED ITS OFFICE FOOD WASTE BY MORE THAN 75 PERCENT |url=https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/how-wri-reduced-office-food-waste.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendhow, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{HOW WRI REDUCED ITS OFFICE FOOD WASTE BY MORE THAN 75 PERCENT}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/how-wri-reduced-office-food-waste.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }