Sodexo Embraces Carbon Labelling at 300 UK and Ireland Sites

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• Sodexo Embraces Carbon Labelling at 300 UK and Ireland Sites

04 April 2024

As part of its sustainable catering plans, Sodexo is introducing carbon labelling on its menus.

The new labels will show the carbon impact of a particular meal choice, allowing customers to make informed purchasing decisions. According to WWF, bringing the current UK diet down to 3.12kg CO2e per person per day would deliver over half the food emissions reductions needed by 2030.

20% Seek Out Carbon Labelled Food Choices

Consumer research commissioned by Sodexo suggests an appetite for this information on menus. In a survey of 2,278 UK adults, 20 per cent said they actively seek out food products and places to eat that include carbon labelling as this makes it easier for them to manage their carbon footprint. This almost doubled to 39 per cent among those aged 18-24.

More than a third said they expect restaurants and food-to-go outlets to offer low-carbon options and provide carbon labelling. While 40 per cent said they expect food products to feature carbon labelling.  

Sodexo and WWF have defined a low-carbon meal as one for which the production generates 0.9 kgCO₂e or less.

Lisa Huggins, Food Service Sustainable Diets Manager at WWF UK, said: “We are facing a triple challenge: continuing to produce the food we need while addressing the twin threats of climate change and nature loss. There is a huge opportunity for food businesses like Sodexo to help address this challenge by enabling people to make healthier, sustainable food choices. Alongside staff training and customer education, environmental impact labelling, such as carbon footprint labelling, has the potential to raise awareness of the impacts that the meals we enjoy can have. We look forward to continuing to work in partnership with Sodexo as they seek to deliver this work.”

The system will be implemented at 300 sites in the UK and Ireland by Christmas 2024.

Picture: a photograph of a desk with a plate of avocado toast on it, a muffin and other sweet treats can be seen, as well as a green smoothie. A person is working on a laptop next to the food. Image Credit: Sodexo 

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 04 April 2024

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