Commercial Food Service Equipment

Choose an ENERGY STAR Commercial Kitchen Package

According to Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s Food Service Technology Center, as much as 80 percent of the $10 billion annual energy bill for the commercial food service (CFS) sector does no useful work. These lost energy dollars are often wasted in the form of excess heat and noise generated by inefficient appliances, heating ventilation and air conditioning systems, lighting and refrigeration.

To help counter these costs, ENERGY STAR helps restaurant owners and operators improve the performance of their facilities and equipment while reducing energy costs. Restaurants that invest strategically can cut utility costs 10 to 30 percent without sacrificing service, quality, style or comfort — while making significant contributions to a cleaner environment.

Restaurants, or facilities with commercial kitchens, feature the majority of this equipment and consume significantly more energy than other types of buildings — using approximately 250,000 Btu/sq.ft.

ENERGY STAR qualified equipment can be an answer to mounting energy bills. Purchasing ENERGY STAR qualified CFS equipment as a package for new kitchen construction or as a replacement for aging equipment, can save significant amounts of money and energy on foodservice operators’ electric, gas, water and sewer bills. CFS products in the following eight categories may earn the ENERGY STAR: fryers, hot food holding cabinets, commercial refrigerators and freezers, commercial steam cookers, commercial dishwashers, commercial ice makers, commercial griddles, and commercial ovens. Qualified products can save up to as much as 50 percent over their conventional counterparts.

For a list of ENERGY STAR partners that sell commercial food service equipment that have earned the ENERGY STAR, visit "Where to Buy" button above.

Save Energy, Save Money

Outfitting an entire kitchen with a suite of ENERGY STAR qualified CFS equipment could save operators about 350 Mbtu/year annually, or the equivalent of approximately $3,600. Besides saving energy, ENERGY STAR qualified steam cookers and commercial dishwashers save water. Steam cookers that have earned the ENERGY STAR are 90 percent more water efficient than non-qualified steam cookers; an ENERGY STAR qualified commercial dishwasher is 25 percent more water efficient than standard models.

Help Protect the Environment

Simple actions can make a big difference. Based on projected shipments of ENERGY STAR qualified CFS equipment, it is expected that approximately 35 thousand metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions will be avoided, the equivalent of about 25,000 cars.