How to Reduce Waste in Your Cafe and Cut Costs

Food waste costs the UK hospitality sector £3.2 billion every year. For cafes operating on tight margins, waste is both an environmental issue and a direct hit to profitability.

Research from WRAP and Champions 12.3 found that for every £1 invested in reducing food waste, hospitality businesses save an average of £7. Most of that saving comes from buying less stock that spoils, lower waste disposal costs, and better portion control.

This guide focuses on drink-related waste in cafes, specifically milk, coffee, and specialty drinks, where simple product choices can reduce spoilage significantly.

What Causes Waste in Cafes?

According to WRAP’s analysis of hospitality waste, the causes break down as:

• Preparation waste: 45%
• Customer leftovers: 34%
• Spoilage: 21%

For cafes, spoilage is the category where product choices have the biggest impact. Fresh milk that sours, bananas that brown, coffee beans that go stale — these are predictable losses that add up quickly.

Research suggests that 61% of food waste generated by cafes is avoidable. The following sections address the main culprits.

How Much Milk Do Cafes Waste?

Milk is the largest volume ingredient in most cafes after water. It’s also one of the most wasted.

On average, cafes waste 20-25% of their milk. The causes include overfilling steam pitchers, drinks remade to customer preference, and stock that expires before use. Fresh milk has a shelf life of approximately 10 days. For a small cafe with variable footfall, this creates a constant tension: order too much and it spoils; order too little and you run out.

Does Granulated Milk Reduce Waste?

Granulated skimmed milk (such as Milfresh) offers a shelf life of 12-18 months unopened. It requires no refrigeration, doesn’t sour, and reconstitutes to make milk that froths and tastes like fresh dairy.

A 500g bag of granulated milk makes approximately 5 litres of liquid milk. The reduction in spoilage risk is roughly 90%.

For vending machines and self-service stations, the difference is even more significant. Fresh milk systems require daily cleaning to prevent bacterial growth. Granulated milk systems typically need cleaning every 2-3 days, reducing water, chemical, and labour costs.

How to Reduce Milk Waste From Steaming

Spoilage isn’t the only issue. Milk waste also occurs at the point of preparation. Baristas routinely steam more milk than needed and the excess gets poured away.

Granulated milk dispensed by weight (using scales or calibrated scoops) eliminates this waste stream. Every gram purchased is a gram served.

How to Reduce Coffee Waste

Coffee waste works differently from milk. Beans don’t spoil in a food-safety sense, but they do go stale. Once the aromatic compounds degrade, the coffee becomes unsellable for quality-focused cafes. This is “quality waste” — product that’s technically safe but no longer fit for purpose.

How Long Do Coffee Beans Stay Fresh?

Four factors degrade coffee: oxygen, light, heat, and moisture. Proper packaging addresses all four:

• One-way degassing valves allow CO₂ to escape without letting oxygen in
• Foil-lined bags block UV light completely
• Sealed packaging prevents moisture absorption

With proper storage (airtight container, room temperature, away from heat), whole beans maintain peak freshness for 3-4 weeks after opening.

Does Coffee Bag Size Affect Waste?

Most cafes stock multiple coffees: a house blend for espresso, decaf, perhaps a single-origin for filter. Each coffee has different density and requires different grinder settings to extract properly.

Every time you switch from one coffee to another, you need to “dial in” the grinder — adjusting the settings until the shot pulls correctly. This calibration process typically wastes 50-70g of coffee.

A cafe switching between house blend and decaf several times per day, or changing from espresso to filter beans, accumulates this waste quickly.

How pack size affects this:

Smaller bags run out faster, which means more frequent changeovers between coffees. If your 250g bag of decaf runs out mid-shift, you switch to a new bag — and if you were also switching between decaf and regular, you’re dialing in repeatedly.

Larger bags (1kg) last longer, reducing the frequency of changeovers and the associated calibration waste.

For cafes stocking several coffees, buying coffee beans in 1kg bags rather than 250g bags reduces how often you’re switching and recalibrating.

Should You Refrigerate Coffee Beans?

No. Roasted beans absorb moisture and odours. When cold beans come out of the fridge, condensation forms on the surface, accelerating staling.

Correct storage: Airtight container, room temperature (around 20°C), away from heat sources and direct light.

How to Reduce Milkshake Waste

Traditional milkshakes using fresh fruit carry high waste risk:

• Fresh bananas: 3-5 days before browning
• Fresh strawberries: 3-7 days
• Ice cream: subject to freezer burn and temperature fluctuation

For a cafe selling milkshakes occasionally, fresh fruit spoilage is almost inevitable.

Are Milkshake Powders Better Than Fresh Fruit?

Milkshake powders (such as Shmoo) offer 18 months shelf life unopened and 6 months after opening. A venue can serve a banana milkshake once a week for six months without discarding any inventory.

Yield: A 1.8kg tub produces approximately 138 regular servings.

Operational benefit: Powder systems mix directly in the serving cup, eliminating blender washing between servings. Traditional blenders require rinsing (water waste) and retain 10-15% of the product on the jug walls (product waste).

Shelf Life of Common Cafe Products

Several other cafe products offer long shelf life with minimal spoilage risk:

For these products, the waste risk is low if basic storage protocols are followed: cool, dry conditions, containers resealed after use.

How to Reduce Cafe Waste: Step by Step

1. Audit your current waste. Track what goes in the bin for one week. Milk? Expired stock? Failed drinks?
2. Calculate the cost. If you’re wasting 20% of your milk at £0.95/litre and using 150 litres/week, that’s approximately £1,500/year in milk alone.
3. Trial shelf-stable alternatives. Granulated milk for back-of-house and vending; milkshake powder for low-volume shake sales; 1kg coffee bags instead of 250g.
4. Implement portion control. Scales, scoops, pumps — anything that standardises dosing reduces both waste and cost variance.
5. Review quarterly. Waste patterns change with seasons, footfall, and menu changes.

Choose suppliers like Caffe Prima – online stockists who offer shelf-stable alternatives across categories — granulated milk, chai powders, milkshake systems, and coffee in 1kg formats — allowing cafes to consolidate purchasing while reducing spoilage risk. 

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does food waste cost UK cafes?

Food waste costs the UK hospitality sector £3.2 billion annually. WRAP research found that for every £1 invested in waste reduction, businesses save an average of £7 in operating costs — a 600% return on investment.

What percentage of cafe waste is avoidable?

Approximately 61% of food waste generated by cafes is avoidable. The main causes are preparation waste (45%), customer leftovers (34%), and spoilage (21%).

How much milk do cafes waste?

Studies indicate that cafes waste 20-25% of their milk through overfilling steam pitchers, remaking drinks, and stock expiring before use. The University of Edinburgh estimates that one in six pints of milk produced is thrown away or lost.

What is the shelf life of fresh milk vs granulated milk?

Fresh milk lasts approximately 10 days and requires refrigeration. Granulated skimmed milk lasts 12-18 months unopened, requires no refrigeration, and has near-zero spoilage risk. A 500g bag makes approximately 5 litres of liquid milk.

How long do coffee beans stay fresh after opening?

Whole coffee beans maintain peak freshness for 3-4 weeks after opening if stored correctly. Store in an airtight container at room temperature (around 20°C), away from heat sources and direct light.

Should you refrigerate coffee beans?

No. Roasted coffee beans absorb moisture and odours. When cold beans are removed from the fridge, condensation forms on the surface, which accelerates staling and can promote mould growth. Store at room temperature in an airtight container.

Do larger coffee bags reduce waste?

Yes, for cafes stocking multiple coffees. Each time you switch between coffees (house blend to decaf, espresso to filter), you need to recalibrate the grinder — a process that wastes 50-70g of coffee. Larger bags (1kg) run out less frequently than smaller bags (250g), which means fewer changeovers and less calibration waste.

Are milkshake powders better than fresh fruit for cafes?

For low-volume milkshake sales, yes. Fresh bananas last 3-5 days before browning; milkshake powder lasts 18 months unopened and 6 months after opening. A 1.8kg tub produces approximately 138 servings. Powder systems also eliminate blender washing and product residue waste.

What is the shelf life of hot chocolate powder?

Hot chocolate powder lasts 18-24 months unopened and 6-12 months after opening if stored in cool, dry conditions with the container sealed. For low-volume users, individual sachets eliminate portion waste entirely.

What is the shelf life of chai powder?

Chai powder lasts 24 months unopened and 8 weeks after opening for optimal flavour. Store in cool, dry conditions with the lid tightly sealed. Metal tins are recyclable.

How much can a cafe save by reducing waste?

WRAP research found that hospitality businesses save £7 for every £1 invested in waste reduction — a 600% return on investment. The average restaurant cut food waste by 26% in the first year of implementing reduction measures.

Sources: WRAP Hospitality and Food Service Guide, Affordable Waste Management, Waste Managed Cafe Guide. Product shelf life data based on manufacturer specifications.