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Acting together as an industry to reduce food waste

Date posted:01 Dec 2021      |      Author: Cecilia B

On Tuesday 30 November, event professionals gathered at Friends House for the “No Planning – No Planet” event. Participants talked about food waste in the industry and how we might reduce it. The event was organised in partnership with Quiet Company, Greengage Solutions, Trident Hospitality and UK Harvest.

Tackling food waste to tackle climate change

Participants listened to presentations on key facts about climate emergency. Organisers highlighted how tackling food waste will be crucial for the future of the planet. UK Harvest prepared a delicious lunch for all the attendees. However, the lunch had a twist as the food served had been rescued from being wasted. Hospitality and Food Services produce 2.87 million tonnes of waste every year (including food, packaging, and other non-food waste items). The aim of this lunch with a difference was to show that we throw food that is perfectly fine to eat. This happens too often in our industry.

Providing solutions to food waste in our industry

Speakers also presented the audience with some solutions. Paul Henderson-Grey, CEO of Quiet Company, talked about transforming coffee ground into cosmetics. He also focused his talk on the issue with over-ordering and how venues can challenge this. You can find out more about our green initiatives on our Sustainability page. Liz Woodsell, COO of UK Harvest, presented her charity and how they rescue surplus food from supermarkets or hospitality companies. They then redistribute rescued food rescued to people in need or serve it in their hub cafe.

Food for thought

Paul Henderson-Grey: “Today, we planted seeds of thought about coming together as an industry for the greater good. I believe this is just the start of something bigger. And as COP26 has shown us, as an industry, we need to be part of the solution, not the problem. It won’t happen overnight but we hope to get more and more venues with taking a small step approach to solving the problem.”

Quiet Company, Greengage Solutions, Trident Hospitality and UK Harvest hope to organise more of these events in the future and why not create a hub for venues to share their best practice and experiences regarding food waste. The foodpath to sustainability starts here.

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