Instead, they are given to the staff canteen in order to cut food wastage, according to Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) President Cheah Swee Hee.

Speaking to FMT, Cheah said that most of the time, hotel restaurants were able to estimate how many customers would be coming for the buffets.

Even if there was an excess, it would only be around 10% of the total amount served, he said.

“Every hotel usually knows roughly how many people are going to come, but if there is an excess, we send that to the hotel’s staff canteen.

“If there is a shortage, then we can always top-up later.”

Cheah added that most hotels also practise “live cooking” during their buffets so that the ingredients aren’t needlessly wasted.

“When we cook in front of people like this, they know that the ingredients are fresh.

“On top of that, we can yet again ensure that measures are taken to avoid any wastage of food.”

He pointed out that the reason hotels often provided buffets, as opposed to single-course meals, was to provide variety.

“We do not encourage people to waste food. That is not our aim. Our aim is to tell people that they can try a bit of everything.”