As WWF-Malaysia chief executive officer and executive director Sophia Lim rightly puts it, food is central to Malaysian culture, where greetings such as “Sudah makan (Have you eaten)?” are common across the country’s many languages.
“And the famous phrase, ‘jom makan (let’s eat)’, I am sure we can all resonate with that,” she said. “It brings families together. All our festivities are always food-first.”
Speaking at the launch of the Best Practice Guidebook on Food Waste Management and Responsible Sourcing, Lim said while food celebrates the nation’s diversity, the food system is under pressure from overproduction, unsustainable diet and rising food waste.
She shared a shocking revelation – with close to 17,000 tonnes of food waste generated daily, it would take only 18 days to fill up the entire Twin Towers.
“This trend reminds us that food choices impact both people and the planet. We must respect the environment, our fishermen and farmers in securing food security for future generations. Every action from sourcing responsibly to consuming thoughtfully can make a meaningful difference,” Lim said.
The guidebook was a joint effort of Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre Business Events Alliance (KLCCBEA), which contributed operational best practices gathered through industry workshops; WWF-Malaysia, which oversaw its development and publication; and Impact Hub Kuala Lumpur (now known as KLBRTF World), which conducted the research, analysis and content development.
Sunway Resort Hotel and The Westin Kuala Lumpur contributed practical industry perspectives that helped shape the final resource.
The guidebook is designed to equip industry practitioners and the next generation of hospitality talent with the knowledge and tools to embed sustainability into their daily operations and decision-making.
Beyond theoretical discussions, the guidebook illustrates Malaysia-centric case studies that have successfully implemented sustainable food practices.
Sunway Resort Hotel, for instance, leveraged circular economy solutions to maximise resource utilisation and minimise waste. Through creative use of food scraps and trimmings and proactive planning, it was able to minimise waste and conserve resources.
Taylor’s University has used the guidebook as a key reference for its “Food Sociology” and “Business of Hospitality, Food and Leisure Management” courses. USCI University is set to adopt the guidebook in due course.
Taylor’s University senior lecturer Dr Jacqui Kong said the guidebook introduces the Behaviour Centred Design approach, which invites users to identify the root causes of wasteful behaviour and inspire them to adopt targeted, scalable solutions.
Her students reported an increase in confidence with food waste management techniques and strategies after using the guidebook, she said, adding that they particularly appreciated the case studies which feature Malaysian players in the food and beverage industry embedding sustainability practices in everyday situations.
Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre general manager John Burke, in his speech, said: “By aligning how we train talent with how the industry operates, we create the conditions for more consistent and measurable improvements in food waste management and responsible sourcing.
“Our next step is to embed the guidebook’s principles into our own internal training programmes, and to work with our partners to advocate for its wider adoption – across hospitality, food and beverage, and academic institutions alike.”
