The provenance and origin of the food we purchase is a key consideration for us. To ensure that our suppliers comply with our exacting approach, we audit suppliers across our ‘Top Ten’ countries on their social, ethical and environmental standards as specified in our Vendor Assurance programme.
Our UK and US businesses have led the way with the introduction of sustainable fish and seafood sourcing initiatives. Our UK team took its sustainable fish purchasing commitment to the next level by becoming the first EU contract foodservice provider to gain Marine Stewardship Council certification in September 2008. Our US business continues with its sustainable sourcing commitment, originally launched in 2006, to protect threatened fish supply by moving the Company’s purchases away from threatened fish species and towards sustainably sourced supplies, in partnership with the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
In our UK business, Restaurant Associates was awarded a Good Egg Award from Compassion in World Farming for their move to cage-free only eggs.
In 2008, in conjunction with key UK clients, we participated in the Supply Chain Leadership Collaboration programme, a group of leading global companies seeking to measure carbon risks and liabilities through the supply chain. The results of this review will be used to refine our environmental strategy.
