Since 2021, the Michelin guide assigns “green stars” dedicated to the commitment of restaurants towards a path attentive to sustainability. Among the aspects examined are the use of local and seasonal ingredients; the quality of the products, including biological, biodynamic, and ethical origin; the low energy impact in the use of resources; waste reduction initiatives, reuse and recycling of waste; and finally, the collaboration with the local community.
The aim of this communication is to describe and analyze: (i) how sustainability can be achieved by a culinary proposal and how it can be communicated to customers; (ii) how at the end of the culinary experience such effort is perceived and evaluated by the customers; (iii) which is the socio-economic impact on local suppliers of raw materials used and processed in the restaurant’s kitchen, through the experience an Italian restaurant named Locanda Radici (LR). The culinary activity of LR is based on the sustainability of its choices in terms of supply of raw materials, including relationships with local suppliers, processing of dishes and communication with customers.
LR has developed a method to measure a sustainability indicator for each dish on the menu and to communicate this value to the customer a clover, of different colors, is reported next each preparation. The presence of pictograms next to the dishes allows: to involve customers in the choice of dishes based on the attribute of sustainability; to make them participate in the sustainability project; and finally, to communicate that choices also in the kitchen respectful of the environment are possible and therefore reproducible in the daily choices from the material, its origin, and transformation.
