Compass Group takes major step on path to halving food waste by 2030

Compass chefs in the kitchen using Waste Not 2.0 food waste technology

Worldwide expansion of in-kitchen food waste management solutions will make it easier for culinary teams to reduce waste and carbon impact

  • One third of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted globally, amounting to c.1.3 billion tonnes of food per year, worth c.US$1 trillion*
  • All the food produced globally, but never eaten, would be sufficient to feed 2 billion people - more than twice the number of undernourished people across the globe*
Stop Food Waste Day logo

To mark the sixth annual Stop Food Waste Day, Compass Group, the world's leading food services company, today announces the global expansion of its suite of food waste management solutions to further advance the Group’s 2050 Net Zero ambitions and its target to halve food waste within its global operations by 2030.

In 2021, Compass Group’s range of food waste management systems tracked waste in its kitchens across 26 countries, leading to a 28% reduction in food waste. Now, this global expansion will see food waste technology made available across all of Compass’ 44 markets, improving tracking and accountability of kitchen waste worldwide while also delivering significant reductions in the Group’s Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions and its clients’ carbon footprint.

Compass Group’s efforts will include the expansion of its game-changing Waste Not 2.0 system; a state-of-the-art tablet-based waste tracking programme, built by chefs for chefs, that helps kitchen teams identify waste-reduction opportunities that go beyond typical trim, bones, core, and peel waste. The digital platform, created by Compass Group USA, also provides managers with intuitive tools to quickly analyse data, calculate and report the carbon impact of kitchen waste, and find long-lasting solutions in the fight against food waste.

In the USA, the Group’s largest market globally, the Waste Not 2.0 tool has been instrumental in reducing food waste by up to 45% in several pilot programmes. Following this success, Compass Group USA has committed to rolling out the system in thousands of kitchens throughout the US during 2022, while also making the tool available to its culinary teams in other markets worldwide.

The Group is also expanding the use of other food waste management systems already in place or coming online across many of its operating countries, including:

  • Compass’ partnership with technology company Winnow, whose smart scales have helped its commercial kitchen teams track and avoid food waste since 2014 (currently used by Compass in markets including Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg)
  • Oscar, a kitchen management tool used by Compass Group France in 550 units for menu planning and tracking food waste, with plans to roll it out across all French units by the end of 2022.
  • Compass Group Asia Pacific’s new strategic partnership with food waste prevention specialist Leanpath, whose technology, behaviour-change tools and programme support systems are being deployed in Compass kitchens across Angola, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Kazakhstan, New Zealand and Singapore this year.

To further raise awareness of Stop Food Waste Day on a global scale, Compass Group has published The Stop Food Waste Day Cookbook, a digital cookbook that features recipes from 45 Compass chefs across more than 30 countries. Designed for home cooks and to inspire chefs around the world, the cookbook makes it easy to create meals that give a second life to ingredients which most commonly go to waste in home kitchens, including stale bread, bruised fruit and vegetables, and discarded peels.

The new cookbook also includes a list of 10 handy tips from Compass’ culinary teams intended to inspire everyone to adjust their daily food habits and maximise the potential of the food they buy, benefitting not only the environment but household budgets too.

The digital Stop Food Waste Day cookbook is available on the Stop Food Waste Day website, which includes further information on how individuals, families and businesses can get involved in the annual #stopfoodwasteday movement. In addition, Compass’ clients and country teams will celebrate Stop Food Waste Day with a variety of live cooking demonstrations and fun, educational workshops in cafeterias around the world. This provides even more opportunities to share advice with customers and clients so they can reduce the amount of food that goes to waste.

Dominic Blakemore, Group Chief Executive Officer of Compass Group, said:

“With a third of all food produced globally wasted every year, we are clear about the collective role we must play in driving permanent change across our industry and the food system as a whole.

“Within our own business, we’re expanding the use of technology across our global operations to better understand and reduce our own food waste footprint while working in partnership with our clients and suppliers to halve food waste by 2030. At the same time, we’re on a mission to raise public awareness of this growing food waste problem, providing real-world solutions, from our kitchen to yours, to show how small changes at home can make a meaningful difference.”

Amy Keister, Global Director of Sustainability at Compass Group, added:

“While Stop Food Waste Day started as an initiative to reduce food waste in our own kitchens, it has quickly grown to be a movement that brings together consumers, businesses, non-profit organisations, and government entities, all focused on fighting food waste on a global scale.”

“When we waste food, we also waste all the energy and water it takes to grow, harvest, transport, and package it, compounding the environmental impacts of a decision to throw food away rather than find delicious ways to reuse it. As an industry, we have both an opportunity and a responsibility to lead by example, raising awareness of this issue, taking action and inspiring others to do the same.”

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For more information, please contact:

Compass Group PLC

Giles Robinson, Corporate Communications Director, +44 (0) 1932 963 486

Notes to Editors

About Compass Group

Compass Group PLC is a world leading food and support services company, which serves meals to millions of people in 44 countries and employs and engages around 480,000 people. The Company specialises in providing food and a range of support services across the core sectors of Business & Industry, Healthcare & Senior Living, Education, Sports & Leisure and Defence, Offshore & Remote, with an established brand portfolio.

About Stop Food Waste Day

Stop Food Waste Day is an international day of action in the fight against food waste. Launched in 2017 by Compass Group USA, on 27 April 2022 suppliers, clients, colleagues and customers globally will work together to raise awareness and inspire change around the critical issue of food waste.

Visit the Stop Food Waste Day website for more information: https://www.stopfoodwasteday.com

*Source: World Food Programme