We’re delighted to announce that Wells & Co. has won the Sustainability Award – Company at last night’s National Innovation in Training Awards (NITAs).
The NITAs, run by the British Institute of Innkeeping (BII), celebrate organisations and individuals across the hospitality sector who put their people first through creative, forward-thinking training and development schemes. They span a wide range of categories, from apprenticeships and recruitment strategy to sustainability and inclusivity, recognising excellence across companies large and small.
Our award shines a light on the meaningful progress we’ve made across our managed house estate in reducing food waste and embedding sustainable practices at the heart of how we operate.
With around one-fifth of all food purchased for sale in the UK hospitality industry currently going to waste, we’ve spent the past twelve months challenging ourselves to do better.
Our ‘Sustainable Summer’ programme of food waste reduction activity has seen us tackle the problem from a number of angles. For example, our teams took part in a business-wide ‘Chip Challenge’, designed to reduce unnecessary waste by helping pubs “right-size” their portions. The challenge wasn’t about giving guests less; it’s about giving them what they truly want, creating less waste, and running more efficient, more responsible kitchens. The results speak for themselves: less environmental impact and real savings for our pubs.
Ed Robinson, Head of Sustainability at Wells & Co., said: “This award reinforces something we deeply believe at Wells & Co.: when it’s done well, sustainability is good for business. Our Triple Bottom Line philosophy challenges us to factor people, planet and profit considerations into every business decision we make. The Chip Challenge is a perfect example of how seemingly small changes can drive significant impact; improving guest experience, reducing waste, and strengthening our business all at once.
“We are very proud to have won this award but recognise that we’re still very much on the journey here; we’re now more motivated than ever to work with our peers across the industry to further reduce our environmental impact.”
As well as the Chip Challenge, the ‘Sustainable Summer’ programme further included:
- Collaborating with our friends at the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) on a Wells & Co. version of their ‘Guardians of Grub’ Cost-Saving Skills Course that has now become mandatory training for our colleagues
- Our Head Chef, Craig Billington, hosting a series of ‘Margin Masterclass’ workshops for our pub chefs that included a particular focus on correct portioning
- We conducted our second annual food waste audit to analyse how and where we are generating waste and what we can do to reduce it.
Our sustainability journey continues, but this recognition from the NITAs demonstrates that responsible practices and commercial success can, and should, go hand in hand.
To find out more about all things sustainability at Wells & Co., read our recently published Sustainability Report on our website here – https://www.lifeatwellsandco.com/life-at-wells/sustainability-commitment/
