Most of us might not think about the carbon emissions of the food we eat at home. But for the food services industry, which caters for millions of people every day, in hospitals, schools, businesses and sporting venues, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and operating more sustainably has become an operational imperative. 

In October 2021, Compass Group, the world’s largest food services group, became the first international company in the contract catering industry to announce a global commitment to a 2050 net zero economy. This trailblazing commitment included ambitious emissions reduction targets over the next decade which have been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative, and a further commitment to be carbon neutral worldwide in its own operations by 2030.

Palmer Brown, CFO at Compass Group, does not underestimate the scale of the challenge ahead, and says that radical new collaborations are urgently needed across the entire value chain to make his company’s climate ambitions a reality. 

“We recently took the major step of committing to reach Climate Net Zero across our global operations by 2050. We are partnering with our suppliers to drive more eco-friendly business practices throughout our value chain, while also working with our clients and consumers to encourage them to make more sustainable choices. From our experience, it all starts in the units. We’ve got great people, from our chefs to our frontline workers, all working towards this ultimate goal.”

Brown’s enthusiasm for collaboration is evident across the Group’s global operations, with many of Compass’ individual markets driving forward their own sustainability initiatives; from country-specific emissions reduction targets to digital and operational innovations to reduce food waste.

Compass Group UK & Ireland was the first of the Group’s markets to set out a roadmap for delivering Net Zero, which it plans to achieve by 2030. Robin Mills, Managing Director of Compass Group UK&I, believes that this can be achieved by shoring up trends now that will lead the industry towards a more sustainable future: 

“To achieve our Net Zero ambitions by 2030, we really do have to collaborate with everybody involved in our journey. By 2030, we’ll have switched 40 percent of our proteins to plant-based; the continuation of a journey that’s been going on for some time among our UK and Ireland chefs, who have been working with suppliers and growers to expand our plant-based menus.” 

Changing perceptions about food waste is another topic at the top of Compass Group’s sustainability agenda. With a third of all food produced being wasted, Amy Keister, Senior VP Sustainability USA at Compass Group North America sets out how her team is addressing this issue: 

“In 2017, we launched ‘Stop Food Waste Day’; a global day of action which is now in its fifth year, bringing awareness to the food waste problem on a global scale. We’re also driving forward other environmental game changers such as Waste Not 2.0, our cloud-based waste tracking programme, which helps chefs to prevent and reduce waste. It’s a highly effective tool, reducing food waste by 12 percent across our operations.”

Chef Arjyo Banerjee, Vice President of Culinary, Food Innovation and Central Kitchens at Compass Group India, explains how reducing food waste requires action both inside and outside the kitchen:

“Firstly, we do everything we can to produce just the right quantities of food to minimise waste every day. Secondly, we ensure that we partner with our farming communities, encouraging them to grow grains that are good for our health and wellness, while ensuring that the biodiversity of the soil is also taken care of.”

Operating at the heart of the global food supply chain, Palmer Brown concludes that Compass is in a unique position to influence real change, both with the people it serves and the suppliers it works with. 

“We certainly want to focus on consumer behaviour, offering more plant-based meals that are tasty and attractive. But I think the biggest difference we can make is in the supply chain. That means working with our supplier partners to encourage more sustainable practices; from regenerative agriculture, to using eco-friendly labelling and reducing plastics in packaging. While many suppliers are already doing this, I think there’s a lot more we can do together.”