A top to bottom, company-wide war on waste helped workplace us win the Waste No Food Award at the Food Made Good Awards 2019, the Sustainable Restaurant Association’s annual industry accolades for the most progressive purveyors of food and drink.

Some of the UK’s best-known restaurant and café brands as well as independent operators, caterers and suppliers were among the 20 winners rewarded for their positive response to the climate crisis, with a host of innovative and impactful ways of reducing their environmental impact and increasing their positive impact on society.

Vacherin’s Director of Food, chef development team and operations managers all teamed up to mastermind a food waste plan good for planet and profit. Over the past year it upped its use of wonky or I’mPerfect fruit and veg to nine tonnes – sourcing and serving mountains of produce that would otherwise have been binned.

Our chefs also found ever more creative ways of using previously wasted items. Today’s leftover porridge has become tomorrow’s protein bars and smoothies. This type of innovation, combined with an ever more proactive approach to measuring and monitoring, helped Vacherin reduce its food waste by a quarter.

Yeshna Mistry, our Sustainability Lead, said: “We’re very proud to be recognised for our efforts to reduce food waste. Our chefs have come together to share innovative ideas across our sites, driving constant progress and as a company we are committed to doing even more to ensure we waste even less.”

The Waste No Food award, sponsored by Kingspan, is designed to recognise the foodservice businesses demonstrating real innovation to ensure food goes on the plate and not in the bin.