FoodPrint - Pioneering Sustainability within Foodservice Operation

Overview

In March 2013, Compass Group, a world leader in food and support services, in collaboration with ADEC Innovations, a pioneer in environmental sustainability business solutions, launched the Carbon FoodPrint Toolkit (Foodprint). This internet-based system was developed to help Compass Group’s food services clients reduce their environmental impact and operational costs while catering to increasing sustainability demands. Active across the United States and Puerto Rico, Foodprint is used in industries ranging from education and professional sports to manufacturing and healthcare.

Challenge

As Compass Group’s clients became increasingly sustainability-conscious, the challenge lay in providing a comprehensive, easy-to-use solution to help cafes measure, manage and lower their operational costs and foodservice-related carbon footprints.

Solution

Foodprint helps cafes reduce their carbon footprints by decreasing waste disposal, energy and water use across four key areas: menu engineering, kitchen services, site equipment and facilities. This integrated, user-friendly online tool allows cafes to benchmark and measure improvements made, which can then be shared with clients for annual reports and sustainability indexes.

Process and Partnership

The development of Footprint involved strategic partnerships with organizations like the Green Restaurant Association, the Environmental Defense Fund and the Food Service Technology Center. Compass Group specifically teamed up with ADEC Innovations to deliver an online application that monitors key sustainability metrics through a cutting-edge dashboard.

As part of this collaboration, ADEC Innovations collected thousands of pieces of data on production, packaging and transportation of individual food items, serving materials and cleaning chemicals. This data, coupled with site-specific operational data, offers an up-to-date snapshot of the carbon, energy, water and waste footprints of foodservice operations.

Outcome

The results from Foodprint are easily accessible through an online dashboard format hosted by ADEC Innovations. The information provided helps managers make informed decisions for their businesses, clients and the environment. The data can also be used by clients for annual reports, corporate sustainability reports (CSR), sustainability indexes and disclosures to third parties.

With this innovative technology, Compass Group is helping redefine sustainability within foodservice operations by providing unprecedented visibility into the environmental impact of their operations.

The Highlights

This case study showcases the effectiveness of Foodprint in providing a comprehensive solution for foodservice businesses aiming for enhanced sustainability. By integrating data-driven decision-making with environmental responsibility, Compass Group demonstrates its commitment to innovative solutions that meet client expectations and foster long-term positive change. Foodprint is currently available to all 9,900 Compass Group cafes in the United States, symbolizing a significant step forward in sustainable foodservice operations.