ASSESSMENT OF RESTAURANTS’ SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGIES AMIDST COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic is responsible for a sharp drop in business activities particularly in the hospitality and tourism industries. The onset of fear from being ill with Sars-Cov-2 and heightened by government restrictions, businesses were forced to seize operations or reduce capacity which created a big impact in their performance and stability. The objective of this research was to identify the sustainability techniques used by restaurants in Cabanatuan City, Philippines, under this pervasive situation. It addressed specific aspects of sustainable development, focusing on the economic, environmental, and social components. It employed a descriptive research approach with ten randomly selected restaurants, survey questionnaires, and observation to collect data. Findings revealed that restaurants adhered to certain areas of sustainability particularly in the area of Business Management, indicating the right approach in terms of appropriate tools in business activities that foster effective administration, compliance, and cash flow management to achieve its sustainability target, whereas some elements in the areas of Corporate Social Responsibility require improvement. Other notable observations ascribed to shift in the new normal include reliance on digital and social media to transact with clients. Furthermore, a lack of implementation of waste management and water conservation techniques, as well as challenges to food supply chain management sustainability, are imminent, and adoption of renewable energy may be deemed important. The overall score on the eight characteristics examined in this study pointed to the sustainability strategies to verbal interpretation of "often," which, in order to achieve more sustainable development goals, must be changed to "always."