Previous magazine articles 
Forging a Path to a Sustainable Future
For a contract caterer - or any operator, for that matter - keeping the staff and customers happy across 500 sites is not, one would think, an easy task. In addition to the usual priorities of staff, customers and quality control issues, these days there is a far more pressing priority for operators to address. As overheads rise and profits are squeezed - particularly in the current climate – caterers are increasingly concerned about the effect their activities are having on the environment around them, and on their bottom line. Waste - in whatever form - is an unavoidable byproduct of the foodservice business. From packaging and preparation through to plated leftovers, the issue of food-waste management is a recurring problem for caterers throughout the UK.
With nearly 3.5 million tonnes of food waste being sent to landfill by contract caterers every year in the UK – and landfill tax to double within the next 12-24 months – there has never been a more urgent need for prompt action to address the issues of energy-conservation, waste-management and transport emissions.
Catering in Scotland meets one company with just such a challenge, and discovers their solutions and progress are both groundbreaking and financially rewarding…
As Britain's largest independent contract caterer for business and industry, BaxterStorey looks after the catering for more than 400 clients throughout the country. Operating and managing employee restaurants, café bars, deli operations and executive dining rooms for organisations as diverse as Deutsche Bank, Porsche GB and BBC Scotland, the firm is considered to be one of the most respected foodservice providers in the UK. With over 5,000 staff and a turnover in excess of £200 million – built up in just eight years - it is undoubtedly one of Britain's most successful private businesses. However, as with many high achievers, with great gains come great sacrifices; or - in this case - environmental responsibilities. In addition to providing first-class food to thousands of customers each day, BaxterStorey also has to contend with the huge amounts of inevitable waste. True to form, it is this aspect of the business that its management team has elected to tackle head-on, for the sake of their bottom line as well as the environment.
In recognition of the scale of the challenges they face in becoming more of a sustainable operator, three years ago the company appointed their first dedicated member of staff to oversee the management of its waste, sustainability and overall 'green' performance. Mike Hanson, BaxterStorey's Director of Environmental and Sustainable Practice, has been addressing the many and varied issues faced by his employer, and has made considerable headway in that time.
Broadly speaking, Mike's responsibility is to achieve the firm's ambitious goals for sustainability and to ensure that staff, suppliers and customers are working with the rest of the company to achieve its objectives.
'The very nature of our business means that we consume huge amounts of energy and resources,' he says. 'At the same time we are producing large volumes of waste from foodstuffs, cooking oil, packaging, effluent, administrative items and surplus equipment.
'We know that each of these elements has a serious impact on the environment, we have both a corporate and moral responsibility to control these impacts as best we can.
'Consequently, our commitment to performing in a sustainable fashion extends beyond the foodstuffs we purchase, and includes the physical operation of our entire company.'
In addition to modifying the policies and processes for purchasing, operating and waste-management, Mike also values education as the key to a more sustainable future. Together with BaxterStorey's head of purchasing, Ian Platt, Mike leads regular sessions with the company's staff to educate them on how their sites are expected to conform to the company's aims and sustainability targets.
'I attend all regional the operational meetings so I can ask for feedback from staff on new ideas, and so I can provide advice on the issues we are facing, as well as updates on initiatives we have implemented recently,' he explains.
The scale of the environmental challenges faced by a company of their size is staggering: A study by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) found that each year, in every household, restaurant and work-dining service, one-third of all food is thrown away, contributing to 20 million tonnes of food waste and a landfill burden that requires urgent attention.
'According to the government, the production and transport of food alone accounts for 20 percent of the UK's climate-change emissions,' continues Mike. 'To tackle this problem, we provide clients with regular reporting on the impact of their foodservices on the environment, and we've undertaken audits to assess their environmental impact. In some cases we've worked as a consultant to some of our clients in managing their environmental performance and providing advice on how they can improve their processes.'
While tackling packaging has been a popular move, addressing the waste at the root of food preparation is one of the areas that Mike believes has been most neglected: 'The trend towards using pre-prepared foods has caused a general deskilling of chefs in the trade, as well as an increase in packaging use,' he explains. 'I believe that chefs need to be trained to revive traditional culinary skills, while embracing modern kitchen and management techniques, ensuring they know how to purchase fresh, seasonal ingredients, understand how to use the whole ingredient and how to freeze, extend life and maximise the potential of all foods to minimise waste.
'Chefs equipped with a deep, professional understanding of their trade are more creative and more innovative, and are therefore more able to accurately manage food preparation, thereby minimising waste and unnecessary outlay.'
At Acergy in Aberdeen, a BaxterStorey-held contract since 2008, the company has implemented a policy of local sourcing of only quality Scottish ingredients from the surrounding area. Jeremy Wood, Managing Director for BaxterStorey Scotland, is keen to stress the importance of local procurement: 'We source over 70% of our fresh food used within the Acergy site from Aberdeen-based companies,' he says.
'Aside from supporting the food producers and distributors within the area, this approach enables us to reduce our own environmental impact and the costs associated with delivering our service.'
As the first contract catering company in the UK to commit to using British-only meat, BaxterStorey achieved a goal that has been eluding its larger competitors for years: 'Since 2006 we have ensured that the lamb, beef, pork and poultry we prepare and serve in our dining, hospitality, deli and Grab & Go services is acquired from only British farms,' explains Jeremy.
'All our food carries appropriate Quality Assured certification, and we have strong links with influential organisations such as the Marine Stewardship Council, the National Farmers' Union and National Pig Association. We work closely with all of them to ensure we source our foodstuffs exclusively from within the UK.'
This pledge only recently extended to bacon and pork products, mainly because so much is produced overseas. However, following considerable effort to find high quality, good value bacon in Britain, the company can now rightfully claim that over 80% of the 7m slices of bacon they serve each year comes from Quality Standard Mark-assured high-welfare British pigs.
'Pig farming has declined by 50% over the last decade in the UK,' continues Jeremy. 'We believe that farmers should be supported by a foodservice industry which recognises the effort required to deliver the quality we seek.
'For us this means using produce which has been reared to the highest standards and is not forced to travel across international boundaries for rearing or processing. Meat which moves from farm to fork in the speediest time means our chefs have the highest quality ingredients at their disposal.'
'Operating sustainably allows us to comply more easily with legislation, and it minimises our regulatory costs and encumbrance,' concludes Jeremy. 'Being a sustainable operator carries its burdens in terms of cost and effort but at the end of the day, if it's good for our clients and it's good for the environment, then it's good for our own bottom line.'
And that pretty much sums up the company's attitude towards being a responsible caterer with a conscience; not only does it benefit their clients and satisfy the lawmakers and Eurocrats in Brussels, it also ensures that BaxterStorey can continue to operate profitably and thereby reinvest in its people, its customers and the industry. In other words, everybody wins. As a self-perpetuating modus operandi, it takes some beating.
BaxterStorey is the UK's leading independent foodservice provider for business and industry. Operating employee restaurants and executive dining rooms for businesses across the UK, the company employs more than 5,000 staff and works with over 400 clients including Barclays, ITV, Oracle, Selfridges, Porsche GB and Virgin Atlantic.
Visit www.baxterstorey.com for further information.
This article has been edited from its original version. For the complete feature, please see Catering in Scotland magazine November/December 2009.
To join our database, go to
Media Pack on this website and click on
Subscribe.
