Malaysia is a country in which food is regarded as of the utmost importance. From various local outlets to international cuisines, the food landscape has grown tremendously over the years, birthing many new dishes and successful chains. Secret Recipe is one of them.
From its roots in 1997, Secret Recipe has grown to become one of Malaysia’s most prominent café brands. To date, its 380 café outlets are found in many urban locations across Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Brunei, Maldives, and Bangladesh. The chain serves a variety of local and international dishes, as well as baked goods.
As a leading restaurant chain in Malaysia, Secret Recipe is no stranger to pioneering success in the local food and beverage industry. Of course, the company aims to pioneer sustainability in the industry, as well.
“Wherever we can, we want to educate and show others that we are more than just a restaurant business,” says environmental and sustainability manager, Shawn Sim. “We aim to set an example in the Malaysian food industry landscape to encourage greater contributions from others in this aspect.”
Sustainable Food Business recently spoke to Secret Recipe about its efforts to improve sustainability across its business operations, from reducing food waste to sustainable sourcing.
Secret Recipe: Tackling the issue of waste
Food waste remains one of the largest sources of waste generated by households and the restaurant industry in Malaysia. Reports show that Malaysians generate around 16,720 tons of food daily, accounting for 44% of total waste. A government agency further highlighted a 15-20% uptick in food waste during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Secret Recipe is working to combat this. As a restaurant chain selling daily meals as well as baked goods, its chains often see leftovers, unused egg shells, cake sponge, and more.
In this, the company has actively engaged with local CSR programs such as The Lost Food Project to redirect food waste to charities or refugee homes. Other initiatives include the Zero Food Waste Project, which supplies food waste such as egg shells, fruit and vegetable peels, and more to farms. Upcycling is another, in which Secret Recipe creates plant pots, planters or similar gifts using containers that once stored cake-making ingredients.
The company has also obtained its own compost machine, which it uses to generate its own organic compost. In some cases, Secret Recipe offers to compost food waste from its suppliers, as well.
Outside of this, the company is actively engaging in other initiatives to eradicate other forms of waste. Turning to digital menus has been one such way, reducing paper waste of traditional physical menus. Reducing plastic usage is another, with the company turning to biodegradable or sustainable bags, straws, or takeaway sets.
“We engage in a lot of recycling,” Sim adds on. “We have a waste contractor to collect our packaging waste and recycle them accordingly. For our electronic waste, we have another contractor treat the toxins before properly disposing of them. We have a wastewater treatment facility, as well.”
In some outlets, Secret Recipe is paving the way for more sustainable energy operations, as well. “Some of our outlets are shifting towards Green Building Standards, such as window coating to reduce the heat so that air conditioning costs can be lowered,” says Sim.
Prioritizing sustainable sourcing
“We would always try our best to solve sustainable products,” says Sim. “Several of our suppliers are certified by MyGAP. This usually means that they have good environmental practices like fewer pesticides, resulting in higher quality produce.”
MyGAP is a Malaysian initiative put in place by the local Ministry of Agriculture. To gain certification, companies must adhere to a certain number of environmental standards. Secret Recipe may also consider exploring other sustainable sourcing areas being pursued in the industry.
Some examples gaining traction in Asia include organic dairy and cage-free eggs. Cage-free eggs in particular are steadily gaining momentum. In Malaysia, research has shown a growing consumer attitude towards purchasing cage-free. Indeed, 83% of Malaysian consumers have expressed that food companies should source eggs from “a supply chain that adheres to suitable standards”, while over 60% are willing to pay a higher premium for cage-free eggs.
Outside of this, Secret Recipe has set up a number of educational talks and programs to share the benefits of a more sustainable operational workflow to its suppliers.
“We do a lot of environmental talks and workshops,” Sim says. “We showcase what we’ve been doing recently and what they can try to do better. Sometimes, we try to organize visits to our local suppliers so we can see their program up close. We’ve visited several suppliers and so far, they’ve been quite happy to open up and be transparent with us.”
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