Scaling Sustainability: A Process Eco‐Innovation Model for Food Waste Reduction

ABSTRACT

This study examines how foodservice management companies respond to sustainability pressures through process eco‐innovation (PEI) in food waste management. Using interview data from mid‐ to senior‐level managers, we develop a PEI model leveraging institutional theory. The model explains how institutional directives, including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, drive organizational change. The findings reveal that institutional learning, compliance monitoring, and stakeholder engagement are key mechanisms that translate global directives into operational improvements. This study further identifies adaptive sourcing, whereby organizations dynamically reconfigure the boundary between external technology partnerships and internal solution development as legitimacy expectations and operational fit evolve. Financial, cultural, and operational barriers further shape PEI implementation and scaling. By linking institutional pressures with organizational adaptation, the PEI model contributes to understanding how service‐intensive firms can embed sustainability into core processes while maintaining legitimacy. The results offer actionable guidance for advancing sustainability in on‐site foodservice management.