Green procurement criteria for hospitality cleaning

Minimum Environmental Criteria (known in Italy as CAM) are requirements public administrations apply to service tenders, including cleaning, to guarantee a minimum level of sustainability in what they purchase. Private hospitality businesses are increasingly taking them into account too, not just out of obligation but for market positioning, especially in a region like Tuscany where tourism and environmental image are closely linked.

Contents

• What green procurement criteria require for cleaning
• Why they matter beyond the public sector
• Measuring the environmental impact of the service
• Correct dosing as the first practical step
• How to verify a supplier’s compliance
• Green procurement and property sustainability certifications
• Applying the criteria to a tender specification
• Common gaps found during compliance checks
• Keeping documentation up to date over the contract’s life
• A reference framework useful beyond public tenders

What green procurement criteria require for cleaning

Green procurement criteria for hospitality cleaning set requirements on products (a minimum percentage of biodegradable ingredients, the absence of specific substances), equipment (energy efficiency, materials) and working methods (controlled dosing, staff training). The reference document is public and periodically updated by the relevant environment ministry, so it is worth checking the latest version before drafting a tender specification or assessing a supplier.

Why they matter beyond the public sector

Although designed for public tenders, these criteria are becoming a reference point for private contracts too, especially when a hospitality business is pursuing sustainability certifications or works with international tour operators who care about these issues. Some large hotel groups have started asking their cleaning suppliers for a statement of compliance with these criteria even without a direct regulatory obligation, simply because it has become a recognised and verifiable standard.

Measuring the environmental impact of the service

Assessing the environmental impact of hotel cleaning needs measurable indicators: water and chemical product use per room cleaned, the amount of plastic used in packaging, the percentage of certified products. Without data, any sustainability claim stays just an intention. A 60-room hotel that starts tracking these indicators monthly often finds room for improvement that wasn’t visible before, such as bathroom detergent use running noticeably higher on some floors than others at comparable occupancy.

Correct dosing as the first practical step

Correct dosing of detergents in hotels is probably the simplest, almost cost-free way to cut the environmental impact of the service: a pre-dosed dispensing system removes the waste that comes from estimating product quantity “by eye”. At a property cleaning 40-50 rooms daily, even a 15-20% cut in detergent use per room, achieved purely through correct dispensing, adds up to a meaningful annual saving on purchasing costs.

How to verify a supplier’s compliance

Simply asking a supplier whether they “meet the criteria” isn’t enough: it is worth requesting technical data sheets for the products used, documentation for any environmental certifications cited and, where possible, a periodic consumption report. A supplier that provides this documentation without hesitation offers stronger guarantees than one that sticks to generic verbal claims.

Green procurement and property sustainability certifications

Many environmental certifications for hotels and hospitality businesses, including internationally recognised ones, list cleaning compliance with minimum environmental criteria or equivalent standards among their requirements. Getting to know these criteria before starting a certification process avoids having to redo supplier and product selection midway through.

Applying the criteria to a tender specification

For a public or publicly-owned property that needs to put a cleaning contract out to tender, translating these criteria into a concrete technical specification takes more than a generic regulatory reference: it requires specifying the minimum percentages required for each product category, how compliance will be checked during the contract, and any penalties for non-compliance found. A well-written specification reduces the risk of receiving bids that declare compliance on paper but don’t deliver it in day-to-day practice.

Common gaps found during compliance checks

The most frequent gap found during a compliance check isn’t a failure to buy certified products, but a failure to document their use consistently: technical data sheets kept out of date, dosing logs that stop being filled in after the first few weeks, or staff who cannot explain why a particular product was chosen when asked directly. Building a simple, low-effort routine for updating this documentation, rather than treating it as a one-off exercise at the start of a contract, makes far more difference at the next check than buying an even more expensive certified product.

Keeping documentation up to date over the contract’s life

Compliance with these criteria isn’t something to prove once and forget: technical data sheets get updated by manufacturers, products get reformulated, and staff turnover means new team members need to be brought up to speed on the documented procedures. Reviewing the supporting documentation at least twice a year, rather than only when a check is imminent, keeps a property genuinely ready for verification at any point in the contract.

A reference framework useful beyond public tenders

Understanding these criteria also helps private properties build more objective selection criteria for their own cleaning suppliers. It is the level of attention we apply in our cleaning service for Tuscan properties.

Want to assess the environmental impact of your property’s cleaning service? Get in touch.