FEED MKE will provide chefs and food businesses with:
✅ Waste Audits & Action Plans
Partner with top researchers and data analysts to track and reduce food waste.
We’ll provide hands-on training for food businesses on using waste audit tools effectively. Plus, we’re offering a limited number of FREE waste audits to help Milwaukee-area chefs, restaurants, and caterers identify savings and minimize food waste in their kitchens and dining rooms. We'll also connect you with our LakeFriendly Business program so you can take the pledge!
✅ Training & Education
Learn from global and local experts who share cost-saving, waste-reducing strategies. Through a network of industry leaders and local changemakers, we’ll offer training on key food waste topics.
Want to master food preservation and fermentation? We’ve got you covered. Need help navigating food donation policies? We can guide you. We’re here to connect you with the knowledge and tools you need.
✅ Collaboration with Food Professionals
Build connections, streamline supply chains, and get expert support.
Milwaukee’s food community is strong, independent, and built on collaboration. We want to strengthen those connections by bringing together local chefs, restaurant owners, and caterers—along with national and international partners—to find practical solutions that reduce waste and improve your bottom line.
✅ Community-Based Marketing Campaigns
Gain visibility and promotion through national, regional, and local outreach.
We know how hard it is to cut through the noise in today’s crowded marketing landscape. That’s why Food Saver Challenge participants receive: up to one year of Food Saver related marketing support, ongoing publicity and digital storytelling opportunities, and targeted ad placements and media exposure.
✅ Smart Solutions for Food Waste Prevention
Partner with FEED MKE to reduce food waste and generate revenue through services like Too Good to Go, Goodr, GoodieBag, Food Rescue Hero, Vivery, FlashFood, and more!
By joining Mayor Cavalier Johnson's Food Saver Challenge, you'll gain early access to top tech-enabled food-saving resources. We'll connect you with our partners to ensure your surplus food reaches community members—helping them save money – reducing waste, and boosting your bottom line!
- Host a Bread-to-Tap Event with FEED MKE
- Download Chef Vojtech Végh's Resource Guide
- Leverage Social Media
- Spotlight a Menu Favorite or Feature a Food-Waste Friendly Dish
- Host a Waste-Reducing Restaurant Crawl or Food Tour
Surplus Bread Becomes Brew for a Cause
Partner with a Local Brewery to Host a Bread-to-Tap Event
Bread-to-Tap events bring together brewers, restaurants, and organizations to transform unsold bread from local bakeries into a unique, limited-release beer—raising awareness about food waste and sustainable solutions.
Brewers (or distillers) can also collaborate with local farms and gleaning organizations to incorporate surplus produce into a special brew with the same mission.
A Bread-to-Tap Event is more than just a beer release—it’s a chance to educate, connect, and inspire action against food waste. Add Trivia, Food Themed Karaoke, Live Music, or a Food Drive to amp it up!
Let FEED MKE help you partner with a local brewery to fight food waste and have some fun!
Food Waste Resources from Chef to Chef
Chef Vojtech Végh | Zero Waste Culinary Advisor at Winnow knows what it means to operate with a ZERO WASTE bottom line. In this free guide, From Trimmings to Treasure, Chef Végh will help you explore the creative potential of trimming waste.
This guide reveals practical steps and inspiring recipes to help you reduce waste, save on costs, and bring new flavours to the table.
In this guide you will learn: why trimmings are worth more than you think; zero-waste recipes for common kitchen offcuts; real success stories from leading hotel kitchens; and, practical tips to start your food waste journey today.
Written by a working Chef for other working Chefs, this guide will help you reduce waste, save costs, and learn new things! And, if you're interested in doing a deeper dive, please reach out to FEED MKE for access to additional materials from Chef Végh's toolkit.
Let's collaborate and share ideas!
Leverage Social Media
Leverage Social Media: Share food waste prevention materials and showcase your restaurant’s waste reduction efforts—whether it’s composting, smart kitchen practices, or creative ingredient use.
Let the FEED MKE team know how we can help you spread the word! If you post something food-waste-focused on your social media, tag us at #FEEDMKE and @ecocitymke so we can amplify the message.
Whether you share your food waste friendly dishes on the 'Gram, inspire the next TikTok Challenge for food waste prevention, or find yourself as a guest on a podcast episode, don't ignore the power of social media in getting the word out.
It's even better when the message is delicious!
Menus That Drive Waste Reduction
Whether you're front-of-house, back-of-house, or management, you're on the front lines of what food waste looks like – and it's often evidenced through tables just like this one.
Is your Taco Tuesday special encouraging waste through excessive portions and over-ordering? Or, are you sharing ideas about what diners can do with their leftovers other than put them in your trash?
Are you using your vegetable scraps from prep for stock – but not mentioning that in your menu descriptions? Or, are you normalizing the idea of responsible cookery by explaining how your kitchen makes sure that valuable produce isn't wasted?
Are your servers offering a food-waste-friendly description of the menu specials for the evening – but not sharing the news? Or, are you reminding your diners and valued guests that your focus is on fresh, healthy food that nourishes the body – but also protects the planet?
And, even if being vocal is not your jam, at least not right now, you can always start by doing it behind the scenes and encouraging your prep cooks and line staff to work with you to:
Feature a Special FWPW Dish: Create a dish that repurposes commonly discarded ingredients—whether it’s something from your own kitchen or an item home cooks often throw away.
Spotlight a Menu Favorite: Highlight an existing menu item that maximizes ingredient use. Share the story on social media or menu signage to show customers how your restaurant reduces waste.
Join us in making a difference—one meal at a time!
Host an Event or Plan a Tour
You might be part of a family of restaurants or a restaurant group, or you might be a pop-up or a food truck – whatever your role is in Milwaukee's thriving restaurant community, let us help you make connections, enhance collaborations, and prevent food waste!
The Milwaukee food scene is rich with diversity – in terms of cuisine, size, neighborhood vibe, ambience, history, and opportunity.
Let FEED MKE help you plan a Food Waste Friendly Crawl or feature some options for the 2025 DownTown Diining Week!
Perhaps you're a bit more off the beaten path in an up-and-coming neighborhood – or you're known for that one special dish that people travel far and wide for – whatever the case, let's talk about how we can make food waste a part of the larger conversation!
Here's just two examples of what that might look like:
Host a Waste-Reducing Event: Plan an event featuring dishes that minimize food waste—whether it’s a tasting, a special menu, or a plated dinner. And let FEED MKE help you coordinate your food reovery efforts for addressing the surplus.
Organize a Food Waste Awareness Tour: Collaborate with other restaurants or a tour organizer to create a walking tour. At each stop, a restaurant representative can share their food waste reduction efforts while offering a quick taste or small bites. Add on refreshers and other noshes for purchase and treat it like a traveling pop-up!
The sky is the limit – so let's plan something zero-waste and fun!
- Maximize Your Grocery Haul with The Meal Prep Mate
- Choose a Ready-Made Plan to Save Time and Prevent Waste
- Use the Guest-Imator to Plan Your Next Waste-Free Party / Event
- Store It, Keep it Fresh, and Don't Waste It
- Cook It, Save It, Revive It, Repurpose It!
Use the Meal Prep Mate to Maximize Your Grocery Haul
It’s time to get more flavor and less waste out of meal prepping. Whether you’re a prepping pro or just starting out, click the image below for access to the tools you need to get started with meal prep, make a shopping list, portion your meals, and maximize what's already in your fridge.
Short on Inspiration But Want to Go Waste-Free?
Cook all your meals at the beginning of the week. Waste none of them by the end of it. Everything you need to meal prep - from your shopping list to your kitchen essentials - are right here. Click the image below to get started!
Use SaveTheFood's "Guestimator" to Plan Your Next Waste-Free Party
Whether you're planning a dinner party for family or a few friends – or hosting a big event – use the "Guestimator" to make sure you have the healthiest, most balanced amount of food for your guests to enjoy themselves without creating waste. Click the image below to access this interactive tool to help you make the most of your menu!
Learn the Best Ways to Store Everything
This interactive storage guide includes tips, tricks, and info to keep your food fresh and tasty for as long as possible. Whatever the ingredient, there are suggestions here to help you make it last and keep it fresh!
Recipes for Cooking with Scraps, Past Its Prime, and More
Don't toss it when you can freeze it, ferment it, freeze dry it, dehydrate it, sauce it, or cook it into something new! Click the image for a searchable list of recipes for everything from overripe avocados to cheese rinds.
