Spur Corporation today announced this year’s winners of its sustainability award, The Green Feather Rewards. This award was introduced in 2016 to recognise franchisees with dedication to environmental sustainability. The award evaluates energy consumption, water conservation, waste management and eco procurement of non-centralised produce of more than 500 restaurants in the group’s portfolio. Winners receive a financial contribution towards additional sustainability enhancements.

Commenting on the award, the Spur Corporation CEO, Val Nichas, said: “The new leadership team defined a common purpose of For the Greater Good last year to ensure that we have a meaningful social impact through employee development, environmental responsibility and constructive engagement with stakeholders. Our franchisees are important partners in achieving these objectives. Our internal sustainability team works closely with them to evaluate their sustainability initiatives each year and we are very proud of the fact that even with the devastating impact of COVID-19 on our industry, 86% of our franchises participated in the recent evaluation and award process.”

RocoMamas The Grove in Gauteng was the clear winner, with reduced energy consumption, effective resource management and increased recycling. This restaurant contributed towards the Grove Mall’s recycling programmes, with 17 619 kg recycled materials in April 2021 alone. Based on this restaurant’s successful projects, it will used as a training restaurant for other RocoMamas franchisees to assist them with future sustainability programmes.

Some of RocoMamas The Grove’s sustainability initiatives include:

• Lights with motion sensors

• Energy-saving lights

• The use of natural light

• Biodegradable cleaning products, takeaway boxes and paper bags and straws

• Local sourcing, including vegetables and fruit

• The use of own-grown herbs, with the waste from coffee grinding used as compost

• Recycling and responsible waste management, which includes supporting an employee to run a recycling business with the franchise’s recyclable materials

The runner-up was Pasadena Spur in Paarl in Western Cape. Some of their sustainability initiatives include:

• Infra-heat grill and gas usage

• System to manage and monitor consumption and energy saving

• Heat pump technology to provide energy-efficient cooling and heating

• A waste management sorting system to encourage greater recycling efficiencies

Commenting on the award, the Spur Corporation environmental sustainability manager, Joe Stead, said: “We were very excited to reinstate the Green Feather Rewards. This award and our annual Spur Corporation evaluation of franchises serve as important incentives for continued improvement in our franchise network. Due to the engagement over the last five years with our franchises, we have seen a continued shift in awareness on issues related to environmental impacts.”

“A key example is our collaboration on the eco build of RocoMamas Tableview* in the Western Cape in 2018. This refurbishment resulted in an environmentally-conscious design and green building methodologies. The space includes state-of-the-art energy saving equipment, on-site waste management and gray water collection, which has resulted in a much lower environmental footprint.”  (*See case study)

For the first time, the group also introduced an award for an eco-operational champion to recognise an operational manager who plays a key role in working with franchises on their sustainability programmes. Richard Phalane, a RocoMamas operational manager, was acknowledged by the franchises for his guidance and commitment to driving sustainability within the franchisee network.

For more information on the Spur Corporation Green Feather Reward please contact: ecoteam@spur.co.za

*TABLEVIEW ROCOMAMAS CASE STUDY – 2018

Building

• Building design smaller windows reduce the heat coming into the building

• Stacker doors and windows allow natural light and ventilation

• Sky lights provide natural light to back of house and bathrooms

• Roof turbine ventilators provide fresh air to back of house

• LED lights throughout the building, with occupancy sensors where needed

• Exterior lights face down and signage is boxed to reduce light pollution of the night sky

Heating and cooling

• Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) is all energy efficient

• Inverter technology used for air conditioner is more efficient and quieter

• Extraction system on grill provides air curtain to limit spread of hot air, is split with separate controls and variable speed

• Alien vegetation used in fireplace for extra heating in winter

• Cold room and freezer have extra insulation with audible open door alarm and blower above door

Energy efficiency

• Energy management system with App based real-time monitoring and data analysis

• Induction cookers and special cookware replace standard boiling table

• Synergy gas grill uses fat atomisation technology for more succulent meat and less cleaning – no need for a fat tray and fatty waste disposal

• Solar water geyser for heating of water and solar pump for greywater system

• Under bar fridges have zero emission technology

Water conservation

• Water efficient toilets and taps, fitted with aerators

• Greywater system collects run-off from bathroom basins, air-conditioning, compressors, cold room and ice machine for flushing toilets and urinal

• Sub-metering for all water to ensure it is managed correctly

• Water-wise plants outside the building

Waste reduction

• Old windows from initial building will be reused in the future

• Old paving was cleaned and reused again instead of sent to landfill

• Building rubble (over 30 tons) was re-used to create raised areas and fill trenches outside, with less than 7 ton of dirty rubble sent to landfill

• Separation at source to allow for better waste management

• Recycling and composting to reduce waste to landfill

Materials and finishes

• Low volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in paints and wood varnish

• Epoxy flooring in kitchen replaces traditional tiles – hygienic & hard wearing

Operations

• Cashless store – safer, faster and more accurate

• No plastic straws and only eco-friendly takeaway packaging

• Biodegradable hand soap and cleaning materials

• Public transport available for staff and guests

• Recruitment of local staff to work in store relocation of management team

• Eco Pledge and signage to encourage for staff to save resources

• Green team to be set up to help drive implementation

Benefits

• Cost reduction of operations and maintenance

• Return on investments for use of efficient technology

• Reduce transport cost and increase local economy

• Reduce carbon footprint and negative environmental impact

• Reduce resources needed – electricity, water and waste generated

• Better working environment for staff – increase productivity