Members’ News
April 2021
Consumers welcome vaccine passports to enable hospitality to open up... #
Research undertaken by data and digital experts in Hospitality and Wholesale, TWC, taken across 1,200 consumers in the last ten days within a new tracker, TWC Trends, has shown that 65% of us feel comfortable with pub / restaurant owners requiring customers to hold a vaccine passport (proof that they have had the vaccine) or certificate to that effect.
Despite a sizeable group of MPs saying they believe the move would be discriminatory, that’s not the sentiment being reflected across the general public with only 16% saying that they think it is not fine for establishments to require a vaccine passport.
According to Tom Fender of TWC:
“Our research shows that there is a great deal of pent-up demand from consumers who want to get out and about and back into hospitality establishments. And, there is a high proportion of people who genuinely do not see being asked for a Vaccine Passport as an issue, if it means that some freedom is allowed in being able to open up and resume some normalcy.
“And whilst those aged 18- 34 are the last group destined to have a vaccine – there is an irony that this was the most supportive group in respect of Vaccine Passports.
“How personal data is stored in the future from those passports, is of course a different matter, and we await the government’s statement on Monday”.
Feedr Launches Nationwide Employee Perk to Support Wellbeing at Home #
Flexible food tech platform, Feedr, now part of Compass Group UK and Ireland, has expanded its full suite of office catering solutions to service employees working from home. The new proposition, called Cloud Canteen @ Home, allows employers to continue offering subsidised meals but instead of a designated office location, meal kits can be delivered directly to employee doorsteps.
The effects of the pandemic on employee wellbeing cannot be underestimated. A study by the Harvard Business Review revealed that 85% of employees said that their wellbeing had declined and 55% have struggled to balance their work and home lives during the pandemic. This is putting the onus on employers to provide the necessary support and guidance for employees for both now and in the future. According to a recent Feedr survey 90% of employers have already made the commitment to make employee wellbeing a renewed focus.
Riya Grover, CEO at Feedr, comments: “Feedr has been looking ahead to a future of more flexible working practices and workplace innovation. Cloud Canteen @ Home allows us to offer a blended solution to help companies enhance their employee wellbeing.
“Regular home deliveries from hand-picked food providers are a unique way for businesses to keep their workforce healthy, motivated and engaged wherever they are at a time when many are faced with declining productivity and wellbeing.”
After receiving their first team order, Abby Capper, Community Manager at Wealthsimple said: “We loved it so much! It was all great, the presentation was incredible, the food was delicious, and I received a lot of compliments. We’ll definitely be ordering for home delivery again.”
Employers are increasingly turning to catering options that can adapt to emerging working patterns. Many are searching for an easy-to-use solution that is fit for catering to fluctuating headcounts and changing workplace locations - be it at a regional hub or from home.
Feedr’s modular suite of office catering solutions provides employers with exactly that - a powerful technology platform that allows them to seamlessly switch between different occasions and locations all while empowering employees to make health-conscious food choices.
Pan’Artisan Launches NEW Italian Wood Fired Pizza Bases #
Pan’Artisan has announced the launch of its new Italian Wood Fired pizza bases, a re-engineered version of one of the Company’s most popular bases.
The desire for artisanal foods remains high with consumers and to elevate its offering, Pan’Artisan has re-engineered its Italian Wood Fired pizza bases, resulting in a product with the authentic characteristics of a higher crust and the delicious flavour of true Napoli pizza.
Versatile enough for any meal occasion, the Italian Wood Fired pizza bases offer operators a gourmet menu item, with regional provenance that embodies current trends and the authentic flavours which Pan’Artisan has become known for.
Chris Dickinson, Pan’Artisan’s Development Director; “We wanted to ensure that our Italian Wood Fired bases were as genuine as they could be. It’s for this reason we have them manufactured for us in Italy, guaranteeing provenance and authenticity. To ensure a rustic, artisanal base the dough is hand stretched and, to offer the ultimate in convenience, they are topped with a premium tomato sauce and are available in two sizes; 23cm in cases of 10, and 29cm in cases of 12.”
The Italian Wood Fired bases are available part-baked and delivered frozen. When required, they simply need defrosting at room temperature for 10 minutes. As the base is already sauced, they just need a sprinkle of grated cheese, then topping. Italian Wood Fired bases are suitable for all oven types, cooking times will vary depending on oven and toppings used.
For more information on the Pan’Artisan range of products call 01730 811490 or visit www.panartisan.com
Sodexo recognised at Waste2Zero awards 2020 #
Sodexo in partnership with ethical clearance company Waste to Wonder received the award for Best Waste Prevention (non-food) Project at the 2020 Waste2Zero awards. The company was also named runner up in the Best Waste Project Communication and Engagement category.
February 2020 saw the start of a refurbishment project for one of Sodexo’s blue-chip clients at two central London locations. Tasked by its client to redistribute as much as possible Sodexo partnered with Waste to Wonder to redistribute over 6,000 pieces of redundant office furniture and equipment through Its charitable arm, The Waste to Wonder Trust.
The furniture and equipment weighed around 289,000kg and through the project 99% was diverted from being sent for disposal as waste and redistributed to local and international charities to reuse.
Charities which benefited from the project included:
Emmaus Greenwich (UK)
Spark of Hope (Senegal & Uganda),
FAST (Romania)
Mokwe Development Association (Cameroon)
Simon Mussett, head of waste management, Sodexo UK & Ireland, said: “We are delighted to win this award with Waste to Wonder, we are incredibly proud of this project and helping our client prevent the unnecessary waste of office equipment and furniture by redistributing it to organisations who can maximise the life of the items and helping organisations who are creating new opportunities for disadvantaged individuals both locally and internationally.
“At Sodexo we are committed to ensuring all our waste solutions are built on the foundations of the waste hierarchy and adopt a circular approach and have set ourselves a target in the UK and Ireland to ensure 70% of the waste we produce and manage on behalf of our clients is reused and recycled.”
Sodexo was also announced as runner-up in the Best Waste Project Communication and Engagement category for its work on the account of one of its high-tech clients as part of Sodexo’s 2019 WasteLESS Week where Sodexo’s team demonstrated tremendous engagement and impact across Europe, Middle East and Africa through the creation of multiple resources. These include a ‘Sustainability Best Practice Guide’, intuitive waste signs with QR codes to aid correct segregation and improve awareness, and other initiatives contributing to plastic waste reduction. A collective effort that helped reach the goal of making a true difference.
Ana Svab, CR manager, Sodexo UK & Ireland, added: “Environmental protection is one of the key issues which we focus from a global and regional perspective. We acknowledge that action is critical to ensure that we, as responsible corporate citizen, do as much as we can to improve the quality of life of future generations and reduce the impact our business operations has on the environment.
We continue to look at ways we can reduce our impact on the environment. We can only reach our targets with the help and support from our teams delivering services to our clients and consumers every day which is why our annual WasteLESS Week is an important campaign in our calendar.
“We were very impressed by the efforts of all of our teams, working closely with their clients to successfully engage, raise awareness and to evoke permanent behavioural change to help prevent and reduce waste.”
Compass Group PLC supporting the WBCSD – World Business Council for Sustainable Development Vision 2050 #
A Time to Transform, today, a vision where 9+ billion people live well, within planetary boundaries, by 2050. Our world faces unprecedented challenges in the form of a climate emergency, nature loss and mounting inequality, exacerbated by the COVID-19 crisis. The #Vision2050 framework sets a shared vision and an urgent call for business to action.
As a global leader in foodservice, Compass Group PLC is committed to working towards creating a more sustainable future.
The world faces three critical challenges: the climate emergency, nature loss and mounting inequality. The COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated that these challenges are interconnected, and that our systems are ill-prepared for shocks. As global risks continue to build, business leaders are rallying behind a bold and urgent transformation agenda developed by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), a CEO-led organization of over 200 leading companies.
Vision 2050: Time to Transform sets a shared vision of a world in which more than 9 billion people are able to live well, within planetary boundaries, by 2050. To achieve this vision, we need transformation at scale, and business needs to focus its actions on the areas through which it can best lead the systems transformations.
Vision 2050: Time to Transform maps how systems transform and lays out a new framework to guide business action in the decade ahead. At the heart of this framework are nine transformation pathways – actionable routes for companies to take – covering the areas of business activity that are essential to society: energy; transportation and mobility; living spaces; products and materials; financial products and services; connectivity; health and wellbeing; water and sanitation; and food.
The vision and transformation pathways are aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the targets of the Paris Agreement. Each of the nine transformation pathways contains ten action areas for the decade ahead, designed to help companies drive transformative change in their strategies, business operations and impact on society.
To move beyond business-as-usual into the accelerated transformations necessary, business leaders must adopt three mindset shifts: reinventing capitalism that rewards true value creation; focusing on building long-term resilience; and taking a regenerative approach beyond doing no harm.
While business can take a leading role, it must work on and design systems transformations, together with scientists, policy makers, financiers and investors, innovators and consumers. Only collaboration at unprecedented levels will create the impact and speed needed to achieve all people living well within planetary boundaries by 2050.
“Vision 2050: Time to Transform should not be read with the idea that tomorrow is going to be much the same as today. This is a report for change, starting now, outlining how business needs to play a leading role. We have no time to waste. Achieving this vision requires a wholesale transformation of everything we have grown up with: energy needs to decarbonize; materials need to go circular; food needs to be produced sustainably and equitably and provide healthy diets”, said WBCSD President and CEO Peter Bakker. “Our future depends on transformation. One of the keys to success will be a mindset shift around capitalism. Our economic systems, incentives, global accounting standards and capital market valuations can no longer just be based on the financial performance of businesses: we must integrate our impact on people and planet as part of how we define success and determine enterprise value.”
The report’s foreword, signed by 42 top executives from WBCSD member companies, makes a collective call to global business, stressing: “Business can lead. Business can forge the collaborations required to drive change. It can… but more than that, it must. It is in business’s interest to pursue the transformations set out in Vision 2050 – because its long-term success depends on thriving societies to trade with, and a healthy planet for us all to exist on.”
The launch of Vision 2050 follows the announcement in October 2020, that WBCSD, together with members, raised the bar of business commitment to sustainability through a set of new criteria put forward as part of WBCSD’s membership conditions. The new criteria also focus on the top three priority sustainability challenges that our society faces: climate emergency, nature loss and inequality.
Additionally, WBCSD expects its member companies to strive to the highest standards in corporate governance and transparency, aimed at enhancing the comparability of data for investors and other stakeholders. Over the coming months and years, WBCSD will continue working together with its members and partners to realize the required transformations and “getting sustainability done”.
For more information, please visit our dedicated Vision 2050 website
Walkers, runners and cyclists wanted for Springboard’s virtual race to Nicaragua #
Springboard UK have launched their annual trek, but with a twist - calling for the hospitality industry and supporters to join in with a virtual race to Nicaragua.
Trekkers will join a team and be challenged to cycle, walk, run or push the 5,300 miles from the UK to Nicaragua over the month of May. Teams will be made up of around 30 people, making it a tough, but achievable challenge.
Amy-Jane Cahalane, marketing & events partner, Springboard UK, said: “Each year we take a group from the hospitality industry overseas on a trek to raise vital funds for Springboard and support a local community outreach programme. Our 2020 trek to Nicaragua was disappointingly put on hold, but we’re taking the opportunity to get even more of the industry involved and raise money to help futureproof the talent pipeline for hospitality.”
Participants will be able to create or join a team, whether it be with a group of friends and family or work mates from a hospitality business. Using the My Virtual Mission platform, the miles will be tracked and counted collectively to move each team along in the race. Everyone who takes part will receive a goody bag and a t-shirt, and there will be spot prizes given out along the way.
Amy-Jane adds: “We’re encouraging you to take on a new challenge in 2021 to help the hospitality industry and have some fun along the way. Join or create a team and work together to reach the finish line first. If you want to take part, but haven’t got a team, just leave the ‘team name’ field blank when you register, and we will assign you one.”
The virtual race is being supported by platinum sponsors CH&Co, Nestlé and Lamb Weston, and gold sponsors AAK, Bidfood, Heinz, ISI UK, Kellogg’s, KP, Lotus Biscuits and Unilever.
Registration is £10 per person and teams must pledge to raise £3,000 for Springboard. Participants can register at: www.springboard.uk.net/race
2021 Footprint Sustainability Index in association with Nestlé Professional reveals key opportunities for foodservice #
Nestlé Professional has released its latest sustainability trends report, in association with Footprint Intelligence.
The 2021 Footprint Sustainability Index in association with Nestlé Professional identifies top trends and opportunities to help foodservice leaders build their businesses, develop a responsive strategy, benchmark good practice and identify issues.
The report is broken down into six key areas for a greener foodservice sector, including: Clients & Consumers; Sustainable Diets; Waste; Energy, emissions, natural resources; Employees, health and wellbeing; and Policy and supply chain.
Each section includes a deep dive into factors driving trends as well as how businesses can adapt. For example, ‘Sustainable Diets’ calls upon industry leaders to be bold about meat reduction and champion plant-based alternatives, at the same time as supporting government anti-obesity measures and tackling food inequality. Highlights include advice on how to introduce plant-based options as well as practical tips to help businesses get ahead of anti-obesity guidelines.
The report comprises in-depth interviews and a detailed survey, with input from foodservice experts and sector thought leaders who have helped to set out the key sustainability trends for the future.
Katya Simmons, Managing Director of Nestlé Professional UK&I, says: “The past year has been a challenge for everyone. While sustainability remains a top priority in the industry, it has also risen on the public and political agendas. Addressing it is going to be even more important as the nation seeks to ‘build back better’.
“One of the biggest takeaways from this report is the need for continued collaboration in order to create a greater impact on sustainability goals. At Nestlé Professional, sustainability is a long-term journey of continuous improvement towards transformation. It forms part of our everyday endeavours as we look to not only respond to new trends but also to drive them, because we recognise the need for both incremental and more radical action to achieve the scale of change necessary.
“Our latest report is a far-reaching guide to the future of sustainability, with insights into how foodservice can work together to lead the agenda.”
To download a full copy of the 2021 Footprint Sustainability Index in association with NestléProfessional, visit www.nestleprofessional.co.uk/sustainabilityindex2021.