Sustentabilidade Ambiental em Unidades de Alimentação e Nutrição Hospitalares da Região Sul do Rio Grande do Sul

Abstract

The production of solid waste from a Food Service Unit (FSU) throughout the production scale up to distribution is a concern, especially from the environmental point of view by the generation of waste. In order for the process to be sustainable in a FSU, care needs to be taken, such as: water economy and treatment, energy conscious use, registration through files, spreadsheets or archived documents, as well as the appropriate destination in the waste disposal and collaboration of all team members. The study consists of diagnosing environmental sustainability in the production of hospital FSU meals from all public and private hospitals in the Southern Region of Rio Grande do Sul. Two instruments were used to collect data, a knowledge questionnaire and a checklist of good environmental practice. After the collection, a database was created, calculating the total adequacy and classification of FSU according to good environmental practices. Of the participating FSU, 79% do not have any environmental program or certification and 21% adopt some sustainable measure, such as rational use of water or energy. The highest percentage of adequacy, analyzed through the checklist of good environmental practices, reached 66% whiles the lowest only 24%. Of particular note is the concern with measures to reduce energy consumption and 79% with selective collection. Negatively there is lack of Preparing Technical Cards (PTC), correction factor, lack of alternative electric power as solar panels and no sustainability program. Although there is this concern with the preservation of the environment, it can be concluded that effective actions are still lacking.