Every evening, you close your restaurant and the same question comes up: "What am I going to do with all this?" Unsold, overstocked, perishable products, managing food waste can quickly become a real headache. But what if you could turn this challenge into an opportunity? Thanks to artificial intelligence, it's now possible to anticipate your sales, optimize your stocks and give a second life to your unsold products, while boosting your profitability and respecting your environmental commitments.Â
In this article, find out how AI and digitalization can help you make your restaurant both more responsible and more profitable.
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Between unsold, surplus and perishable products, food waste represents a real challenge for restaurateurs, one that artificial intelligence can help meet by offering tools for anticipating, tracking and optimizing inventory management.
One of the greatest challenges in running a restaurant is knowing how to anticipate sales to avoid both surpluses and stock-outs. But between unforeseen events, fluctuating patronage and unpredictable demand, it's no easy task. That's where AI comes in.
With tools like Fullsoon, artificial intelligence analyzes consumption trends in real time and dynamically adjusts forecasts. Imagine you notice that on sunny days, your salads or light dishes are going like hotcakes. AI can anticipate this trend and suggest that you increase purchases of these ingredients even before demand picks up. This way, you avoid stock-outs and the frustration that goes with them.Â
Who hasn't wasted a little time looking for a product that has disappeared from stock, or realizing that an ingredient is past its sell-by date? Thanks to AI and connected solutions, you can say goodbye to the hours wasted on manual inventory management, and enjoy accurate, automatic tracking of your products.
These tools enable you to track your products in real time, get alerts when certain ingredients are approaching their sell-by date, or when your stocks are about to run out. These technologies act as virtual assistants, ensuring that nothing escapes your attention. Not only do you reduce the risk of wastage, but you also optimize your margins and enjoy much smoother inventory management.
By centralizing and analyzing your inventory and sales data, you can now anticipate surpluses, adjust your orders and automate time-consuming tasks. Data-driven management gives you instant visibility of your inventories and unsold products, enabling you to make quick, informed decisions. As a result, you're more responsive, see less waste and free up your staff to focus on what really matters: your customers and your kitchen.
👉 To find out more: How to use artificial intelligence in your restaurant?Â
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Once surpluses have been identified, it's crucial to know how to recycle them. Numerous digital solutions enable restaurateurs to give a second life to their unsold products, reducing waste while supporting responsible initiatives.
Some platforms offer restaurateurs the opportunity to sell or donate their unsold products at attractive prices. These applications offer customers the chance to buy products that can still be consumed at reduced prices, while helping restaurants to recoup some of their costs.
Many restaurateurs are experimenting with different ways of giving a second life to their unsold produce. Here's how some have decided to reduce waste while generating value:
With partners such as Kikléo and Fullsoon, Innovorder enables restaurateurs to track, trace and add value to unsold produce in real time. These digital solutions enable better management of unsold goods, giving restaurateurs the tools they need to effectively recycle them, whether through sale, donation or processing.
👉 To go further: AI in catering: what changes can we expect by 2025?
AI and digitalization are not just tools for improving inventory management and reducing food waste. They also make it possible to build a more responsible, environmentally-friendly catering business.
The AGEC (Anti-Gaspillage pour une Économie Circulaire) law requires restaurateurs to take concrete steps to limit food waste. AI makes it possible to track product surpluses in real time and reduce food losses, helping restaurateurs to comply with legislation while meeting their CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) commitments.
You can measure the impact of AI on their profitability by observing the reduction in food waste, optimization of raw material costs and improvement in overall inventory management efficiency. By reducing waste, you can maximize your profit margins and boost your restaurant's profitability, while responding to environmental and social issues.
Your long-term goal? To achieve a zero-waste catering model. AI, by enabling fine, predictive product management, can help restaurateurs anticipate ingredient needs and minimize surpluses. With the right tools, restaurants can become agents of change, combining profitability and responsibility.
👉 To find out more: 8 tips to avoid food waste in the restaurant trade
Artificial intelligence is now a major asset for any restaurateur wishing to reduce food waste in their establishment while optimizing profitability. By enabling more precise inventory management, facilitating the reuse of unsold products, and responding to legislative and CSR imperatives, AI offers practical and innovative solutions for reconciling economic performance and environmental responsibility.
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Are you wondering how to apply these solutions in your restaurant? Our Innovorder experts can help you manage your stocks, track your unsold products and add value to your products in real time, while reducing waste and optimizing your margins.
