Greene King, a British pub and brewing company, has declared its intention to eliminate airfreighted fresh fruits and vegetables from its menus as part of its sustainability strategy.
The company aims to achieve this goal across its 1,600 managed pubs by the autumn/winter season of 2025.
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The initiative is the result of collaborative efforts among Greene King’s procurement, supply chain and food development teams, who have engaged with suppliers to facilitate the transition.
Greene King’s chief operating officer Clair Preston-Beer stated: “This is a good example of our menu development team and supply chain team working together with suppliers to reduce our carbon footprint through using different ingredients or ensuring produce is transported by an alternative method to airfreight.
“Our menus feature pub classics and contemporary dishes, and evolve to meet changing customers’ tastes and make the most of the ingredients available to us in the best ways.
“We continue to look at our daily operations, working with our suppliers and offering our customers sustainable choices as we progress towards net zero.”
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By GlobalDataThe company uses more than nine million kilos of fresh produce each year, with potatoes, lettuce and cucumber the most frequently used items.
In partnership with Fresh Direct, Greene King has worked to remove airfreighted items by developing menus that do not rely on such ingredients and by sourcing alternatives through sea or road transport.
Fresh Direct has begun procuring herbs such as basil and chives from British suppliers or via road freight instead of air transport.
Greene King is also making occasional substitutions for menu items when airfreight is the only option available, such as replacing tenderstem broccoli with purple sprouting broccoli and adjusting fruit selections to include alternatives.
Fresh Direct’s managing director Andy Pembroke stated: “We’re delighted to be supporting such a progressive operator as Greene King, which shares our passion for providing the best of the season’s produce, with a particular focus on top quality British food.
“Working in partnership, we support them to create fantastic menus that celebrate fresh seasonal produce.”
