Sustainability at Bidfood

Fair pay

88.6% of our employees are paid above Living Wage Foundation (LWF) rates; this recent percentage decrease reflects the new higher living wage rate as of October 2024. Our employee data shows that employees whose pay falls below this threshold have their pay significantly boosted by variable pay which is excluded from LWF calculations. We assess pay against LWF requirements annually and aim to put a plan in place to bridge the gap between employee pay and LWF rates.

Rewarding responsible leadership

In recognition of our commitment to a triple bottom line approach to business, balancing the need for profit with the wider needs of people and planet, we are looking at aligning elements of remuneration against ESG objectives. We see this as a key way in which we can embed sustainable and responsible practices into the daily operation of our business.

Performance and talent

We offer a wide selection of development solutions and support to unlock the potential of our people, these continue to be refined to ensure they remain stretching whilst driving personal performance and growth. We are developing career pathways that we recognise are important for attracting and retaining talent across all our business areas.  We have launched our external proposition with our new branding and applicant tracking system making it easier to attract the best talent for our business.

Apprenticeships and job creation

An apprenticeship provides a fantastic opportunity to learn and develop while you’re working and earning, giving you the opportunity to apply your new skills within your role. We have developed a pathway of around 77 apprenticeships for internal teams to consider, covering a variety of different functions and at all levels. Recognising the need to attract talent, we are also undertaking initiatives to attract around 30 externally recruited apprentices to join our business in various roles this year. Read more here.

Diversity and inclusion

At Bidfood, we believe our people are our greatest asset. We are committed to providing equal opportunities across our workforce, and treating our people with fairness and respect. Whilst we have more work to do, we are committed to working with our teams to make sure Bidfood is an inclusive place to work.

Health and wellbeing

At Bidfood, we recognise that the only way to achieve our vision is to have great people who are healthy, happy and motivated to be at their best and thrive in a business that truly cares. That’s why we have developed a health and wellbeing strategy that focuses on and drives the importance of wellbeing for all employees. We are incredibly proud to have won the Health and Wellbeing category at the Employee Experience Awards and the Best HR Initiative category at the Food and Drink Federation Awards September 2023.

Sustainability Coordinators

We have refreshed and relaunched our sustainability coordinator programme which is made up of employees across our network of depots working together in People and Planet Teams to improve sustainability at a local level.

Our Sustainability Coordinators organise fundraising activities, encourage food waste reduction and recycling activities, look for changes they can make at the depots to be more environmentally friendly and share information with the teams and other employees.

Employee charity volunteering

We are now in our second year of our employee volunteering scheme which allows employees to take a day of paid leave each year to volunteer with a charity of their choice. This initiative helps to bring to life our corporate vision of being a positive force for change and enables our employees to demonstrate the care value by giving something back to our communities.

Measuring employee engagement

We want our employees to feel engaged, valued, and have a sense of purpose and belonging at work. Our annual employee engagement survey gives us indicators of how they feel. Our 2024 survey showed that 88% care about the future of our company, 81% are proud to say they work for Bidfood and 84% want to still be working here in 12 months’ time.

2045 net zero carbon target

We’ve mapped our carbon footprint across all scopes (1, 2 and 3) and our intended emissions reduction trajectory includes both medium and long term targets. These align with max 1.5°C warming for scopes 1 and 2, and well below 2°C for Scope 3. Our ambition is to have reduced absolute carbon emissions by at least 90% by 2045, with the residual offset, which is a science-based approach toward achieving net zero.  To see how we’re progressing with carbon reduction, please have a look at our latest sustainability report below. Download a copy of our carbon reduction plan here.

Carbon reduction roadmap

To give you an outline of our own decarbonisation journey, and our progress on the key initiatives and milestones that we are working on to achieve our carbon targets, we’ve put together our Carbon Reduction Roadmap. This guide explains how we are evolving our business to reduce our emissions, and the important stepping stones along the way. When it comes to reducing emissions, no business can work in isolation, we all need to engage right across the supply chain to accelerate the pace and scale of decarbonisation. We’ll update our roadmap on a regular basis, to help you better understand the route that Bidfood are taking, so that we can be better aligned with yours. Click here to download the latest version of our Carbon Reduction Roadmap.

Food waste reduction

Food waste is a moral, environmental and commercial problem, so we’re glad to play our part by being very active in this area. As signatories of WRAP’s Food Waste Reduction Roadmap, our target is to reduce food waste by 63% between 2020 and 2030. In 2023 our food waste remained consistent at 0.24% of total food handled. This is unchanged since 2022; the lack of progress was symptomatic of challenges in UK egg supply; we temporarily switched to the EU to meet the shortfall in June 2023, but demand also unpredictably fell, resulting in surplus. That said, we’ve nevertheless maintained a food waste reduction of 26% since the baseline, so with continued effort, we aim to reach a reduction of 63% by 2030. For resources and advice on reducing your food waste, discover more from our Unlock Your Menu campaign.

Carbon emissions in food supply chains

Understanding the carbon impacts of our food choices is so important, as food production accounts for approximately a quarter of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. We are part of a WRAP working group which aims to standardise how food emissions are measured and reported across the food industry, to help drive progress toward better information for food buyers and consumers. We are working on developing a solution for product level carbon data for our customers.

Waste reduction

We aim to achieve recycling rates of over 85%; we report on this annually in our sustainability report, alongside our Scope 3 emissions generated from waste. In 2021 we also started reporting on our EFW (Energy from Waste) percentage.

Water

Water is a precious and threatened global resource, so we are supporters of WRAP’s Water Roadmap, which means we aim to minimise UK water consumption as well as supporting initiatives in food supply chains that aim to address water scarcity issues. In 2020 we helped fund research into water scarcity issues in Southern Spain. We are reviewing our impact on biodiversity and water, and begun engaging with suppliers and reviewing our most material areas. We are also part of UK HSC Sustainability Committee and Biodiversity Group which brings food companies together to determine meaningful biodiversity measures for the foodservice sector.

Reducing plastic

We’re aligned to the UK Plastics Pact and have multiple commitments and targets in place to reduce the amount of plastic we use in our packaging, and to improve its recyclability. For example, we have removed PVC and Polystyrene from our range of packaging products and are making all own brand ready meal tray packaging widely recyclable by 2024. For a full list of targets click here. We’ve also been working on reducing the plastic shrink wrap we use, which is a significant driver of plastic consumption in the delivered foodservice sector. So far, we’ve reduced our pallet wrap per item picked by 9% reduction over two years, and continue to report our progress in our annual sustainability report. One key initiative has been the roll-out of four-sided cages used for deliveries to customers. Once this is achieved, over half our cages will require zero pallet wrap, a great step forward.

Product policies

We have a number of product policies in place to support our customers’ sustainable sourcing objectives. These include:

• palm oil
• soya
• animal welfare
• plastic and packaging
• responsible fish
• modern slavery
• ethical trading

Please see the Customers tab for more info.

Listen to our podcast!

If you’re looking for further advice on how you can reduce your carbon emissions, we have a number of podcasts to help you get started. Click here to listen to Kate Nicholls, CEO of UKHospitality and Kristen Filice, Director of Zero Carbon Forum talk through how hospitality businesses can reduce their carbon emissions. For top tips on starting to become Net Zero, listen to episode 1 and episode 2 of our making the journey to net zero podcasts with Julie Owst, Head of Sustainability and Change at Bidfood and Anne Simonnet, Head of Sustainability and Compliance at Foodbuy.

Responsible sourcing

We carry out an annual review of our own brand product sustainability policies to make sure Bidfood keeps up to date with latest regulations and technology. We ensure consistency with industry best practice whilst always having customer requirements in mind to recognise and address any gaps. Our Healthy and Sustainable Working Group meet quarterly to discuss these areas to ensure progress is being made towards any objectives which have been agreed. Click here to find out more. 

Improving our range of Catering Supplies

We have set targets to improve the sustainability of the packaging products we sell which includes eliminating problematic single-use packaging and improving the recyclability of products. We are also reviewing our hygiene and equipment ranges to review what sustainability improvements we can make in these categories. For full details of all the targets and steps we are taking to achieve these, please click here.

Nutrition

Bidfood supports customers to make healthy and sustainable options by providing guidance and expertise on key issues. Recently we have created a guide to calorie labelling, including a calorie and nutrient calculator on our webshop Bidfood Direct, reformulated our products to reduce the amount of salt and sugar in them, and provided advice and resources on Natasha’s Law. Read more about our work on nutrition here.

Sustainable seafood

At Bidfood, all of our own brand fish and seafood is fully traceable and we purchase all fish using ratings provided in the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) Good Fish Guide. We require our suppliers to source farmed seafood that has been independently certified to GSSI (Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative) standards. On top of this, we’re a member of the Sustainable Seafood Partnership (SSC) and stock both MSC and ASC certified products. Please click here for further details.

Products with ethical and sustainable elements

Alongside working on our product policies, we also aim to stock a range of products which meet sustainability criteria, whether this is by products meeting animal welfare and organic assurance schemes, or by being provided by a BCorp accredited supplier which has committed to aligning the needs of people and planet alongside profit. Read more about these products here.

Catering for allergens

Check out our blog on three key considerations to have in mind when managing allergens in your kitchen.

For more information on how to cater for people with allergies, visit our Allergens webpage.

If you have any questions on the allergen information of a specific product, our Advice Centre will be happy to help.

Sustainability scoring certificate

We’re certified as ‘Bronze’ by EcoVadis, for our sustainability progress. This places us among the top 35 percent of companies assessed by EcoVadis, and we’re working to improve this score further still. It means our customers can trust what we say, and we can share our scorecard transparently with all customers.

Soya policy case study

Following the publication of our soya policy in 2023, we created a case study which explained the steps that we took to create this and what we used to inform our policy. Read our case study on the development of a sustainable soya policy here, which covers the challenges we faced, key learnings and what we strive to do in future. We hope others will benefit from these insights, as we aim to be a positive force for change.

Sustainability fact sheets

To help our customers better understand the ever-evolving world of sustainability and what the priority areas are for foodservice, we’ve put together 16 factsheets to help you better understand what the issues are, what we’re doing about them and crucially, what customers can do. Find them here – Bidfood sustainability factsheets – and you can also read our blog about why we think this is important – Pic ‘n’ mix resources to help you understand sustainability.

Supporting charities

We work in close collaboration with many charities which have been chosen for their fantastic work with young people and support of the hospitality sector. In addition to this our teams around the country support many other charities in a wide range of categories from small local charities to international NGO’s. You can find out more about our corporate charities here.

Promoting healthy eating for children

We understand the importance of providing children with delicious and nutritious meals – we believe learning starts with good food. We regularly run campaigns and activities to help promote healthy eating and support organisations with creative ideas to do so.

Recently we have been lobbying politicians to encourage them to increase funding for school meals so that schools have the funds they need to provide the best food for our children. Listen to our podcast on this here. In March 2024 we hosted The Big School Meals Debate. Industry greats Dr Andy Kemp and Patricia Fellows joined us to break down the current scene of school catering and discuss the impact of politics on school meal funding.

Tackling holiday hunger

We have dedicated campaigns focused on reducing holiday hunger which not only involve raising awareness, but also donating food and volunteering at holiday clubs. We support Hertfordshire Catering Limited (HCL) with their ‘Fit, Fed and Read’ campaign which involves donating provisions for under privileged families during the school holidays. We also work with CaterEd to support families in Devon with food donations which create meals to serve to families, and we donate food to ‘Give Help Share,’ a charity based in Hertfordshire covering Camden and Barnet which supplies families with food provisions. We continue to partner with FareShare who distribute surplus food to those who need it most which includes supporting holiday lunch clubs. Our development chefs have also volunteered at clubs to cook nutritious meals from the donated food as well as provide advice to families on how to cook on a budget and make food go further.

Supporting employee volunteering

We are really pleased to have recently launched an employee volunteering scheme which allows employees to take a day of paid leave each year to volunteer with a charity of their choice. This initiative helps to bring to life our corporate vision of being a positive force for change and enables our employees to demonstrate the care value by giving something back to our communities.

Food donation schemes

We donate our surplus food to a range of organisations who redistribute our surplus food to good causes across the UK. This include foodbanks, pig farms and animal sanctuaries as well as larger distribution organisations such as City Harvest and FareShare, who has named us as a Leading Food Partner. In 2023/24, we donated 205 tonnes of food to FareShare, equating to 488,105 meals spread across 2005 charities and groups – which include food banks, school holiday clubs, residential settings, homeless charities and ex-veteran support groups and more.

Msia coffee impact

Since 2017, we have partnered with Aimers Coffee & Tea Ltd in collaboration with City Coffee with £3 from every case of our Msia coffee sold going towards a school and education project in Tanzania. This has helped to build a 6-acre school coffee farm consisting of 5,649 coffee trees and has 131 members working on the project, including 40 graduates and 91 students. Together, they have planted 16,942 coffee trees. 40 members have started harvesting coffee, generating their own income. Coffee harvested from the school farm since 2020/21 has also contributed to this. The project sponsors 150 students to become coffee farmers of the future.

Apprenticeship levy

As well as promoting apprenticeships as a development tool and progression opportunity internally within Bidfood, we also use apprenticeships to support recruitment and attract talent into the business. We are exploring ways to utilise our apprenticeship levy to support corporate charity partners, customers and suppliers to run training within their own organisations. If you are one of these organisations and feel you may benefit from this support please do get in touch.

Supporting Ukrainian refugees

From April 2022 we have been supporting Hope4, who are working in Moldova to provide shelter and safety for displaced Ukrainian refugees. To date, we’ve donated over 380 pallets of food, which help to feed the refugee families currently sheltered in Moldova. We also secured a £3k grant for Hope4 via the Royal Warrant Holders’ Charity Fund, which we match funded to reach £6k, to fund the employment of a nutritionist. On top of this, we have supported two other charities working in Ukraine with donations of vehicles, sports clothing and winter coats.

Empowering girls and women

We’re a corporate supporter of Catalyse Change, an organisation that recognises that girls and young women are under-represented in leadership roles. Their aim is to inspire and equip women with the confidence, skills and mentors they need to make a positive difference. They proactively help young women who require bursaries to participate, and this is possible thanks to corporate sponsors.

Robust control environment

We are committed to the highest standard of corporate governance and have in all material respects applied the King Code of Governance Principles (King IV). Our corporate governance policies are aligned with the King IV governance outcomes namely ethical culture, effective control, legitimacy, and good performance. The Risk and Assurance Group is appointed to assist the Board in its oversight of the company’s risk and assurance structure.

Fair payment of tax

We commit to act responsibly in relation to our taxation affairs, to fulfil our compliance and disclosure obligations, and to operate in accordance with all relevant laws and regulations. We aim to ensure that we pay the right and proper amount of taxation. We manage taxation in line with our governance framework and procedures; taxation strategy, activities are documented and reported on a regular basis.

Better Business Act member

We are a signatory of the Better Business Coalition, which campaigns for an amendment in Section 172 of the Companies Act, which aim at a fairer, greener future for all. It would oblige every single company in the UK to take ownership of its social and environmental impacts. Read more here.

Modern slavery risk management

We’re committed to putting effective systems and controls in place to safeguard against any form of modern slavery within our business or our supply chains. We have robust People policies and standards in place to ensure compliance with legislation and fundamental rights at work. As of April 2023, 87% of our own brand suppliers are connected on SEDEX, the focus over the coming weeks to get connections to 95%.

ESG reporting framework

We report progress against our initiatives and KPIs in our annual sustainability report. In addition to this, we incorporated reporting aligned to the SASB (Sustainability Accounting Standards Board) within the BFS Group Annual Report for the first time in 2023, and will continue to do so.

Environmental claims

As a trusted supplier partner to our customers, we’ve been training our marketing and customer-facing teams on the Green Claims Code, to make sure our environmental and sustainability claims are fair, accurate and meaningful, so that our customers can trust what we say. Our Head of Sustainability, Julie Owst, delivered a webinar in January 2023 which over 100 of our marketing, sales and customer facing employees attended. To find out more about the Green Claims Code, click here.

Lobbying for change

We want to be a positive force for change, and one of the ways we can achieve this is via lobbying for change. In 2024, we lobbied for mandatory food waste reporting and contributed to the Food Foundation’s Lobbying for Good series,  Lobbying for Good: Five ways to create a healthier and more sustainable food industry | Food Foundation

Supply chain mapping for safety and resilience

We’re currently a partner for a Cranfield University PhD student, Kate Jones, working on supply chain mapping.  Funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBRSC), through the Food Safety Research Network, this project involves a deep dive into one of our manufacturers, Simply Foods. Its aim is to explore how supply chain mapping can support food supply chain resilience to environmental disruption, and we look forward to learning more as the project evolves.