In order to help us and our restaurant owners work towards reducing their environmental footprints, we are developing design standards that incorporate the use of innovative products and practices in both new restaurants and updates to our existing locations, as applicable. We will continuously design, build and operate our businesses to try to be more sustainable, using our restaurant design standards to evaluate energy consumption, water use, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and waste.
Sustainability Through Restaurant Design
As part of our reduction strategy, we plan to support innovation in areas such as lighting, water systems and cooking equipment to work towards lessening the restaurants’ impact on the environment while still always focused on improving the guest experience in our restaurants.
As part of the RBI’s roadmap to reduce our climate impact by 2030, we set interim goals to reduce energy use and emissions from restaurants:
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Energy efficient equipment pilots will be launched in 2021 at one North American restaurant per brand. In 2022, we will begin to implement successful elements at new and remodeled restaurants, and plan to incorporate certain of these measures into our global restaurant design standards in the future.
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RBI has set a goal that 50% of electricity used by franchise restaurants globally will be from renewable energy sources by 2030, and will begin this transition in 2025 or earlier.
These new goals build on the progress made by our brands to date. Some examples of sustainability-focused restaurant design standards around the world are included below:
Tim Hortons, Canada and US:
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LED lighting is standard throughout the restaurant to cut down on electricity use.
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Restaurants also leverage daylight-harvesting lighting to reduce energy use.
- Low-flow, automatic faucets and flush valves are utilized to reduce water use.
- High-efficiency hand dryers used in restrooms eliminate waste from paper towels.
- A reflective roof design standard, an electrical energy management system, and increased air ventilation all support reduced energy use.
- Recycling and Composting programs allow for waste diversion as supported by local codes.
Burger King, US:
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LED lighting is standard throughout the restaurant to cut
down on electricity use.
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Low-flow, automatic faucets are utilized to reduce water
use.
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High-efficiency hand dryers used in restrooms eliminate
waste from paper towels.
Burger King, Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA):
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LED lighting is standard throughout the restaurant to cut
down on electricity use.
- Use of native plants in the landscape
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Use of high efficiency rooftop heating, ventilation, and
air-conditioning systems to reduce energy consumption
In addition, select Burger King restaurants
in the EMEA region are testing the following:
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Installation of electrical car battery chargers for use by
guests
- Use of solar panels to generate electricity for the
restaurant
Popeyes:
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Americas, EMEA: LED lighting is standard in new models and renovations, to reduce electricity use.
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Asia Pacific (APAC): LED lighting has been implemented in new models and renovations, to reduce electricity use.