Putting sustainability first at the Green Accreditation Webinar

"Our sustainability journey is more than just the journey, it's a lifestyle too… that's what we're trying to champion across the whole building and really show businesses that you can work in a more sustainable and ethical way in our industry," the head chef says.

His passion for combating food waste came from first-hand experience of the sector's bad practices. "I didn't see any future in the way the industry was running [particularly] high-end restaurants. I saw the amount of waste we were coming across just to create one dish and still, to this day, I'm constantly haunted by nightmares of seeing all the waste then, compared to now."

He says it doesn't make business sense either, as so much money can be saved by using everything. "It really does come down to a new era of chefs coming through who do care about how much they waste." "In our kitchen I see our chefs' faces light up when they find a different method to prevent the waste."

I'm constantly haunted by nightmares of seeing all the waste then, compared to now

That doesn't mean the experiments always work. "I have created things out of food by-products and I've tasted it and I think, ‘that is not nice' but that's just what happens – you have to go back to the drawing board and not be afraid to fail. [Historically] in the kitchen, you are told from a very young age that when you fail it's not OK. But that's where we need to flip that around and say, no, it's OK to fail and keep going because that's what creates less waste a more creative outlook."

Creating a benchmark

Beth Langley, out-of-home director at Nespresso UK & ROI, says sustainability has been a big part of what the company does for many years. Nespresso recently gained a certification by the not-for-profit network B Corp, which independently assesses the social and environmental impact of a company. She says it took three years and involved assessing 1,500 data points to get there "but it was certainly worth it". She adds: "There was a lot of just managing different databases. I don't want to bring it all down to a huge administrative task. But that's basically what it was."

But the process has helped it look at things holistically and be more sustainable "from farm to cup". "I think from a practical point of view it just provides a great benchmark. In the world of sustainability where there's so many things you can do, it can be quite complex. But once you've got a benchmark, you can measure your actions and it highlights weaknesses as well as strengths and then you can build that roadmap."

Communicating these learnings to customers is a two-way process, she says. "That's what I love about sustainability. We are all learning. Sometimes I might be speaking to a customer that knows more than me on the topic or vice versa. It creates a real balanced conversation."

Langley adds: "I feel we've got a duty to share what we're doing with customers, and we're committed to the education piece, more than anything, and to tell them and show them the way."

Danny Pecorelli, managing director of the Exclusive Collection – which has six luxury hotels, a golf club, two spas, a cookery school and a pub – also achieved B Corp accreditation, the first UK hotel to do so, last year. "I passionately believe in business with a purpose and business as a force for good. And I think the impact we can have by making the right decisions is immensely powerful."

He says B Corp's focus on people, planet and profit has been key. "So it's not saying you can't be a considerate, conscious business person. It's acknowledging that businesses are there and profit is part of the purpose, but it's putting people and planet on an equal footing."

Rethinking business

For Pecorelli it's about fundamentally reframing the core motivation of the business. "One of the most liberating things you can do is to change your articles of association to say that you will put your people and the planet on an equal footing with profit.

"The challenge with company law, particularly in most of the western world, is the only obligation in business is to make profit and return a profit to shareholders. There's legal stuff around health and safety, but as directors and shareholders of businesses, we only have had an obligation to our shareholders to make that profit."

He agrees with Nespresso's Langley that B Corp accreditation is intense. "It is a brutal process in a good way in that they really hold you to account."

Having those ethics baked into the business also means the Exclusive Collection attracts clients seeking to do the right think too. He says large companies are attracted to its facilities because their environmental, social and governance officers are making a conscious effort to use providers with recognised sustainability credentials.

"We've got carbon calculators around food, they can eat in a kitchen garden, they can eat hyper-local, we can offer them activities [such as] immersive nature walks rather than using motorised buggies," he says.

"We now always try and offer a plant-based meal. We've got a restaurant in our spa at South Lodge that's going dairy-free next week. From that corporate point of view, they can tick their boxes. And I hate saying this, but they do need to tick their boxes. So that's where we would commercially benefit."

Ian Thomas, chief executive of BM, a caterer employing 700 staff, says that although his company tends to be more focused on the B2B customer, the sector as a whole shouldn't be afraid to put out engaging content, as consumer appetite for this topic is huge.

"Recently we launched a TikTok channel, which I never thought I'd say. But actually, our chef-director Pete [Redman] had almost a million hits on TikTok talking about avoiding veg trim waste with broccoli stalks!" he says.

"I think sometimes perhaps as organisations in hospitality we underestimate the impact we can have by putting out information on how to do stuff. And if we can do that on sustainability actions, all the better." When it comes to enacting widespread change it's a team effort, he says. "This has to come top down and bottom up and actually it's the teams that will bring out their passion, they will teach you, drive things and become the disciples and the leaders in that space."

He cites the example of a staff member who suggested the business should replace all its disposable cups with china ones across its sites. "So overnight, one team member comes up with a great idea and we go, yeah, we'll adopt that."

For Thomas, sustainability goes beyond doing something that simply sounds good. "You'd expect me to say that sustainability is important for the teams and the clients and bidding to help win new contracts – which it absolutely is. However, for me this is also personal. I've got two daughters and, frankly, their future is in our hands. And the choices we all make as business leaders will impact that future."

Top tips on how to improve your sustainability credentials

Educate yourself

For the Exclusive Collection's Danny Pecorelli, being informed on how to make sustainable decisions is key. "Just educate yourself. There's an amazing book called How Bad are Bananas? by Mike Berners-Lee. You don't have to get into the micro-detail, you can make intuitive, sensible decisions."

Think in teams

"Start small, engage your team, don't do it alone," says BM's Ian Thomas. "It's a group journey and then find an accreditation that suits you in your business. Because it'll give you the framework… and then just go for it."

Keep talking

Nespresso's Beth Langely says it's all about passion, getting people involved and culture. "I just think having the conversations – small, big [with] senior [staff] or with your colleagues – just get talking about it and get passionate and get some ideas out there."

Invest in staff

Brendan Eades from Conduit believes getting the right people from the start is crucial. "You just need to start the journey, start it now. And really invest in finding the people that do care from the very beginning. Because as soon as you've got that, you're on your way already."