Five years ago, consumers considered sustainability and social responsibility important factors in choosing a restaurant. That was true around the world and applied to both fast-food and full-service spots. Not so much now, according to Technomic.
In a recent Global Foodservice Navigator report, Technomic found that 80% of consumers put “overall value for the money” at the top of their lists for limited-service restaurants, and 79% do the same for full-service eateries, while “socially responsible initiatives” came in next to last, at 56% and 55% respectively.
Socially responsible initiatives include recycling, waste reduction, charitable contributions, and the like. But in addition to monetary value, friendly service, convenient location, atmosphere and low prices all beat out these initiatives in 2025.
Asians and Latin Americans, however, have a higher appreciation for sustainable practices than consumers in other parts of the world. Diners in the Philippines lead, followed by India, Indonesia, Mexico and Brazil.
Restaurants in those countries and others are capitalizing on this appreciation with menu items that tout sustainability. For example, the Freshness Burger concept in Japan launched a limited-time Happy Burger that features a patty made of soy and repurposed apples that were misshapen or about to expire past their use-by date. The brand worked with a women’s college to develop the burger.
Komeda Coffee, another Japanese chain, partnered with Dole fruit company to create a banana jam made from imperfect fruit. The jam was marketed as a zero-waste spread to have with Komeda’s signature bread. And in South Korea, Ugly Cheese Potatoes arrived on the core menu at Lotteria, a fast-food eatery. From the description, customers discover that the dish was developed from domestically grown potatoes that taste great but have an unattractive appearance. It’s Lotteria’s version of a Taiwanese street food dessert made of fried mashed potato balls, cheddar cream sauce and corn.
A shake served with an edible spoon at El Corral. | Photo courtesy of El Corral Facebook.
El Corral, a quick-service burger and shake restaurant in Colombia, took a stance against single-used plastics by accompanying its shakes with an edible spoon. The spoon was made from wheat bran and was promoted with the shake in the chain’s marketing materials.
Environmentally-friendly packaging that’s recyclable or compostable is catching on in the U.S., but it’s more prevalent in other parts of the globe—even among American brands. In South Korean locations, McDonald’s is rolling out to-go cups and lids for ice cream made of recycled plastic bottles and switched to eco-friendly tableware in Singapore, according to the Technomic report.
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a Restaurant Business member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.