Here's What Happens To The Uneaten Food On Cruise Ship Buffets

If you've ever been on a cruise ship, you've probably marveled at the overflowing cornucopia of the spectacle that is the cruise ship buffet. At the same time, you've probably also wondered about the other end of the table. What happens to all that food that doesn't get eaten? Spoiler alert: it doesn't go to waste — at least, not in the way you might be thinking.

Cruise ships like Royal Caribbean's Icon of the Sea — a behemoth that can host nearly 10,000 guests, according to WSJ reporting — produce an absurd amount of food every day, from 4,000 lobster tails to 40,000 desserts. And while cruise ship goers are known to throw back an impressive amount of buffet food, turns out their eyes are still bigger than their stomachs, leaving a massive and alarming amount of food wasted on board.

To tackle this issue, cruise lines have come up with pretty creative strategies to cut down on waste. Buffet dishes are carefully measured before being served, and uneaten food is weighed and recorded afterward to adjust portion sizes for future servings. The waste that does remain? It doesn't just get tossed. Instead, it goes on an adventure of its own: through food pulpers, down pipes, and into a system known as microwave-assisted pyrolysis. This process dries up the food scraps, turning them into hamster-food-looking pellets that the ship can use as fuel. As of early 2024, this energy could power small sections of the vessel — like the water park — but at just 200 kilowatts, it's a drop in the bucket for ships that need tens of thousands of kilowatts a day to run.

While it's a promising idea, the scale of these efforts barely makes a dent in the broader problem. In 2022, Royal Caribbean reported generating over 53,655 cubic meters of food waste. To put it in perspective, that's enough to fill 14 Olympic swimming pools with compressed scraps. So what gives with all the waste? 

Well, strict buffet regulations are a big part of the issue: once food has been put out, it can't be returned to the kitchen and will need to be tossed within four hours if it goes uneaten, even if it hasn't been touched. And don't even get us started on the grim rumors as to why so much ice cream gets pulled from the freezers for impromptu ice cream parties.

Still, progress is being made. Since 2019, the company has reduced food waste by 24% and hopes to reach a 50% reduction by 2025. Time will tell if this is enough to make a meaningful impact, but until then, the cruise buffet remains a floating feast of waste. Here's to hoping that progress catches up with excess — because on the open seas, every bite counts.