In 2024, Carle Health Food and Nutrition Services began piloting a food waste reduction program called Leanpath at Carle Foundation Hospital (CFH). Carle Richland Memorial Hospital (CRMH) implemented Leanpath soon after due to the program’s immediate success at CFH.
The Leanpath program works by identifying the root causes of food waste. From quality and spoilage to over-ordering and over-production, this ensures that appropriate amounts of food are ordered and served and prevents food waste. Leanpath technology calculates how much that food waste would have cost and the environmental impact, allowing the food service team to be good stewards of the resources they use.
“Since the start of the program, Leanpath has helped our team prevent more than 48,880 pounds of food waste that would have gone to the landfill,” Kevin Steffes, director of Food and Nutrition Services, Carle Health, said.
CFH and CRMH have reduced pounds of food waste by 45 percent since the program’s start. Leanpath reports that this is equivalent to avoiding the release of 154 metric tons of carbon dioxide into the environment.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), about 31percent of all waste in the United States is from food waste. Food waste is the largest category of material in landfills, which releases methane, a powerful greenhouse gas when it decomposes.
“When food is wasted, its impact goes far beyond the trash,” Steffes said. “It strains our environment and directly undermines food security at a time when far too many families are experiencing hunger. Cutting food waste is one way we can protect resources and help ensure more people have access to nutritious meals.”
This month, Carle Health is announcing an expansion of the Leanpath program to Carle at The Riverfront (Danville), Carle at The Fields (Champaign) and Carle Hoopeston Regional Health Center (Hoopeston).
“The Food and Nutrition Services team originally budgeted just under $18,000 to implement the Leanpath platform over three years,” Steffes said. “We recouped that investment in the first six months of waste tracking, and now we’ve saved over $116,000.”
Cost savings from cutting food waste will be reinvested into compostable food service materials, transitioning away from single-use plastics and foam cups. The Food and Nutrition Services team are also incentivizing Carle Health team members to use refillable drink tumblers instead of disposable cups.
“We’re excited to explore new ways to keep improving our environmental impact,” Steffes said.
Carle Health continues to develop sustainability initiatives to reduce the system’s environmental impact. This comprehensive approach also reduces operating costs while improving patient and ecosystem health.
As an anchor subscriber to community solar programs, Carle Health is supporting the development of clean, renewable energy and making solar power more accessible. Community members surrounding the anchor subscriber can access solar energy when installing solar panels on their property is not possible. This allows them to save money on their electric utility bills.
New landscaping projects are also making Carle Health campuses more sustainable. These projects support healthy ecosystems while creating therapeutic green spaces for patients, staff and visitors to enjoy.
Native plants provide pollinators with habitat, are drought tolerant and lower maintenance. They support the natural water cycle of central Illinois by encouraging water absorption into the soil. This prevents storm runoff from carrying away helpful nutrients and potentially spreading harmful pollutants.
“The connections between environmental health and public health are clear,” Anthony Corso, sustainability and energy manager, Carle Health, said. “We have a tremendous opportunity in health care to become better stewards of our environment, promoting better health for generations to come.”
Corso and his team have recently compiled benchmarking data on climate impacts, energy and water usage, and waste management for all eight Carle Health hospitals. This data was submitted to Practice Greenhealth, an organization working to deliver environmental solutions for health systems.
In 2025, Practice Greenhealth presented Carle Foundation Hospital with a Partner Recognition Award for ongoing efforts to improve the campus’s environmental impact.
“This year we applied to earn recognition at the system level because all of our hospital campuses are making efforts to be more environmentally sustainable,” Corso said. “Sustainability projects improve patient experiences while significantly reducing our environmental footprint. We’ve made great progress in the past year, and we’re looking forward to building on that momentum.”
For more information about ongoing improvements at Carle Health, visit carle.org.
The Leanpath program works by identifying the root causes of food waste. From quality and spoilage to over-ordering and over-production, this ensures that appropriate amounts of food are ordered and served and prevents food waste. Leanpath technology calculates how much that food waste would have cost and the environmental impact, allowing the food service team to be good stewards of the resources they use.
“Since the start of the program, Leanpath has helped our team prevent more than 48,880 pounds of food waste that would have gone to the landfill,” Kevin Steffes, director of Food and Nutrition Services, Carle Health, said.
CFH and CRMH have reduced pounds of food waste by 45 percent since the program’s start. Leanpath reports that this is equivalent to avoiding the release of 154 metric tons of carbon dioxide into the environment.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), about 31percent of all waste in the United States is from food waste. Food waste is the largest category of material in landfills, which releases methane, a powerful greenhouse gas when it decomposes.
“When food is wasted, its impact goes far beyond the trash,” Steffes said. “It strains our environment and directly undermines food security at a time when far too many families are experiencing hunger. Cutting food waste is one way we can protect resources and help ensure more people have access to nutritious meals.”
This month, Carle Health is announcing an expansion of the Leanpath program to Carle at The Riverfront (Danville), Carle at The Fields (Champaign) and Carle Hoopeston Regional Health Center (Hoopeston).
“The Food and Nutrition Services team originally budgeted just under $18,000 to implement the Leanpath platform over three years,” Steffes said. “We recouped that investment in the first six months of waste tracking, and now we’ve saved over $116,000.”
Cost savings from cutting food waste will be reinvested into compostable food service materials, transitioning away from single-use plastics and foam cups. The Food and Nutrition Services team are also incentivizing Carle Health team members to use refillable drink tumblers instead of disposable cups.
“We’re excited to explore new ways to keep improving our environmental impact,” Steffes said.
Carle Health continues to develop sustainability initiatives to reduce the system’s environmental impact. This comprehensive approach also reduces operating costs while improving patient and ecosystem health.
As an anchor subscriber to community solar programs, Carle Health is supporting the development of clean, renewable energy and making solar power more accessible. Community members surrounding the anchor subscriber can access solar energy when installing solar panels on their property is not possible. This allows them to save money on their electric utility bills.
New landscaping projects are also making Carle Health campuses more sustainable. These projects support healthy ecosystems while creating therapeutic green spaces for patients, staff and visitors to enjoy.
Native plants provide pollinators with habitat, are drought tolerant and lower maintenance. They support the natural water cycle of central Illinois by encouraging water absorption into the soil. This prevents storm runoff from carrying away helpful nutrients and potentially spreading harmful pollutants.
“The connections between environmental health and public health are clear,” Anthony Corso, sustainability and energy manager, Carle Health, said. “We have a tremendous opportunity in health care to become better stewards of our environment, promoting better health for generations to come.”
Corso and his team have recently compiled benchmarking data on climate impacts, energy and water usage, and waste management for all eight Carle Health hospitals. This data was submitted to Practice Greenhealth, an organization working to deliver environmental solutions for health systems.
In 2025, Practice Greenhealth presented Carle Foundation Hospital with a Partner Recognition Award for ongoing efforts to improve the campus’s environmental impact.
“This year we applied to earn recognition at the system level because all of our hospital campuses are making efforts to be more environmentally sustainable,” Corso said. “Sustainability projects improve patient experiences while significantly reducing our environmental footprint. We’ve made great progress in the past year, and we’re looking forward to building on that momentum.”
For more information about ongoing improvements at Carle Health, visit carle.org.
Categories: Redefining Healthcare
Tags: community, Day, Earth, energy, environment, food, hospital, impact, Leanpath, reduction, solar, sustainability, waste