Reap Rewards from your Rubbish - Waste in Food Businesses

We need to talk about food waste.

Sustainability is a conversation that all businesses, particularly in the food industry, need to be having. In the UK we produce an average of 15 million tonnes of food waste every year. Relatively speaking, that’s around the weight of 8,250,825 new cars. Enough cars, lined up bumper to bumper, to line the circumference of the earth a whopping 3.7 times.

What’s even more shocking is that 60% of that waste (worth around £12bn) could have been consumed. Instead it is quite literally being thrown in the bin.

Graphic from Feed the 5K Webpage

No longer can businesses afford to be ignorant of waste issues.

Businesses need to be making sure that the sustainability is high up on their agenda. There’s plenty of things businesses large and small can do to utilise their environmental agenda to increase the value of their business.

There’s loads of people who want to help you to improve the environmental value of your business.

As we found out when attended the MAS food waste workshop at the British Library, there’s plenty of organisations who are committed to making food business cleaner business. Melissa Addey, the specialist food advisor who spoke at the event, suggested that we need to turn our thinking away from waste as an expense and towards a way of generating new revenues. MAS is a manufacturing business support service that aims to help improve processes within manufacturing businesses, reduce waste, and put into place long term strategies to ensure continued sustainability. They provide match funded grants for SMEs - something that might be worth looking into if you would like some advice about utilising your waste in your business.

FoodSave is another initiative for SMEs which aims to reduce small businesses’ food waste as much as possible. They divert surplus food to feed people in need, before directing food unfit for human consumption to feed livestock where legally permissible. With any remaining food that cannot be redistributed, FoodSave supports composting and renewable energy generation. The aim is that, by 2015, 150 tonnes of food waste will have been prevented, making demonstrable savings to the local London businesses involved.

Other companies such as Giraffe Innovation, Sustain and Wrap also offer great practical advice and guidance on making your business more sustainable.

We need to start revolutionising the ways we think about waste.

At the event, Thomasina Miers, co-founder of the Wahaca restaurant chain, also spoke about their initiative, The Pig Idea. Wahaca has already proven itself to be a key player in sustainable business, winning a number of prestigious sustainability awards since opening in 2007.

The aim of The Pig Idea is to lift the EU ban on feeding catering waste, or swill, to pigs, reducing the amount of waste produced across the food industry. The initiative looks to introduce a robust legal framework for the safe processing of catering waste, including preventative measures to prevent disease spreading. In turn, this would lower the cost of feed for pig farmers, reduce the economic and environmental costs of disposing food waste, create jobs in the new eco-industry and liberate grain supplies to help feed people across the EU. If you’d like to take the pledge, or want to donate money to help the campaign, you can find all the details on The Pig Idea website.

Other events focusing on sustainability are popping all the time across London.
A couple of weekends ago we attended the Wasted! Brunch Club, hosted by our friends at Maida Hill Place. The event gave us the chance to chat with other foodies and discuss the plight of food waste with other business owners committed to sustainability. Over a delicious brunch provided by the West London People’s Kitchen, we heard from different initiatives from across London, including Feeding the 5K and Kensal to Kilburn Fruit Harvesters. Keep you eyes peeled for more events like this popping up in the next couple of months.

Some businesses have gone one step further and reuse food waste to create a delicious new product.
Rubies in the Rubble create delicious jams, chutneys and pickles packed with fruit and vegetables which are branded either surplus or ‘outgrade’ (products not fitting with the aesthetic criteria of supermarkets). In this, Rubies in the Rubble not only aims to contribute towards cutting food waste, but also sees its products as symbolic vehicles of their message: to consume less and think more about being sustainable.

Bananaberry - similar to RITR, BananaBerry use non-displayable fruit and veg to make smoothies which are delivered to offices around London. 10p from every bottle goes to Cancer research, and they offer a bottle-back discount for every one of their smoothie bottles you return to them.

Brixton People’s Kitchen aims to bring people together through learning about waste food, whilst at the same time gaining new skills in the kitchen and eating some delicious new dishes. Using waste food from local Brixton businesses, the People’s Kitchen invites people to cook in a local kitchen, sharing skills and making new friendships. The scheme has so far prevented nearly 720kg of food waste from being sent to landfill.

Kitchen Table Projects care about waste and are committed to becoming as environmentally sustainable as we possibly can.

Attending the event opened our eyes to the kinds of opportunities available to turn profit on your waste, and inspired us to continue working towards a more environmentally sustainable business model.

If you’re a small business and you don’t know about the British Library and their small business center, then check it out, pronto.

They run some great workshops (many of which are free to attend) and have hundreds of useful resources for small businesses and startups. Take a look at their website to find out more.

Celebrating British Food Fortnight

Britain is at the heart of global gastronomy. Year on year we continue to grow delicious produce which quality is hard matched anywhere else in the world. We’re innovative, we’re diverse and we’re passionate about providence; eating is and has always been central to the British way of life. From your mum’s Sunday roast, to juicy strawberries from Kent or the highest quality hand-reared bacon from your local butcher, food continues to remain at the heart of every Briton’s life. The meaning of British food stretches beyond our stomachs; it reflects our love and pride for our produce, for our farmers and producers, for our country. Because of this, it’s never been more important to champion the plethora of produce our country continues to produce every year.

British Food Fortnight was first curated in order to do exactly that. Starting out in 2002, the team set out to organise a celebration of all things food, primarily aiming to highlight the importance of buying quality, fresh, local and seasonal foods and the health benefits of doing so. British Food Fortnight has since firmly established itself as a significant event in the British gastronomic calendar, attracting the attention of food producers, farmers, the press, chefs, the government and the public alike. Today, the team use the two week celebration as a time to  educate people on all the different and exciting ways you can cook, eat, grow and enjoy British Food, encouraging people to understand more about the plot-to-plate provenance of their food.

As you guys know, Kitchen Table Projects are big on providence and love hearing all the fantastic stories behind our Amazing Artisans’ products. So, in celebration of British Food Fortnight, we put together a list of our ten favourite, can’t live without, British exports.

Meat

Wander down any supermarket meat aisle and you’ll be confronted with huge variety of homegrown offerings. Britain is famous for our delicious Beef, Lamb and Pork, but we also produce amazing game and venison, too.

Tea

Need we say more? Black tea, Builders Brew or Milk’ n ’two… Blighty wouldn’t be without a Great British brew. We’re a thirsty bunch, consuming on average 62.2 Billion cups of the stuff every year.

Marmite

The jar that’s always lurking at the back of the cupboard, the spread we love to hate...the KTP team are firmly in the ‘love it’ camp - do you love it or loathe it?

Strawberries

The British summer staple. The sweet snack of choice at Wimbledon, only bettered with a little cream and a dashing of sugar.

Clotted Cream

Dressing our naked scones for, well, forever. And no, we’re not about to get into the ‘cream then jam’ or ‘jam then cream’ debate.

Cheddar

Tall blonde 5 year aged cheese seeking: creamy butter, handsome ham and a toasty machine to tuck him in at night.

Colman's Mustard

Nigella famously carries a tube wherever she goes - we’re not sure we’d go to quite the same lengths, but it certainly is a firm favourite in British cupboards far and wide.

Oxo Cubes

The underdog of the spice world. Your friend when you forget to buy gravy, perfect for jazzing up a Shepherd’s pie. No Brit cupboard is complete without a tin.

HP Sauce

The tangy friend of bacon butties and Sunday fry ups. Simples.

The Yorkshire Pudding

And we’re not talking about Aunt Bessie’s here, either. Step outside Britain and it’s a crispy eggy mess; To all englishmen - the holy grail of roast dinners.

You can support the campaign by going to www.lovebritishfood.co.uk, where you can find out more about the events going on near you and the ways you an help raise the profile of amazing British food.

Tell us - what British foods get your mouth watering? What in your cupboard could you absolutely not live without?

July at Kitchen Table Projects

Wow...is it August already?! Last month our feet didn’t seem to touch the ground! We were lucky enough to attend a really useful New Product Development conference hosted by Roythornes, wrote about our favourite Independent London Delis, celebrated Independents' Day tested some tasty new products from our Amazing Artisans, and met loads of inspiring people, too. In fact, our Amazing Artisan page on the website  is starting to look pretty busy. It’s home to all the amazing producers that we’ve interviewed and is bursting with loads of great startup stories and foodie adventures.

Alongside our Amazing Artisans feature, we’ve also been speaking to some food industry professionals who have lent us (and you) their thoughts on the ever-changing food world. In our Industry Insiders feature, we talk to people with a wealth of experience in various areas, from branding and marketing to people who have set up their own successful business from scratch. Whatever area they specialise in, we believe that what they’ve got to say is incredibly important and it’s always useful to learn from other people’s experiences.

We've also spent the past month doing lots of research into the shopping habits of the foodie world. We’ve been talking to people about where they like to buy their food, what they like to eat and, most importantly, what they’d like to see on their high streets and what their dream food hub would look like. Last week we started to take a good look at your responses to our questionnaire and discovered some really interesting trends. Contrary to the popular opinion that the high street is dying, you guys interestingly told us that you love the high street and would love to see it filled with more independent retailers. This is great news for us - we love everything independent and would love to see more indies on the high street. But don’t take our word for it, have a look at our results and tell us what you think! Do you agree? Do think that high street retail retail is ready for a revival, or is all your shopping done online? We’d still love to hear all your thoughts - please take a few moments of your time to help a fellow foodie and fill out our online survey.

We’re already looking forward to August and all the exciting things we’ve got planned - watch this space! And as always, you can find us tweeting away @KitchTablePro, or on Facebook, too.

Is the High Street Dead?

It’s been a pretty busy one this month at Kitchen Table Projects. We’ve spent lots of time making  our website awesome, chatting to loads of Amazing Artisans, picking up some hints and tips from the Industry Insiders on our blog, and discovering what fellow foodies love to eat, where they like to buy it, and what they want to see on their high street. We love shopping at independents, so can see why you guys do, too. While the media are readily hailing the ‘death of the high street’, 2 out of every 3 foodies who have taken part in our questionnaire told us they choose to shop at an independent grocer at least once a week. In fact, whilst 60% of you said that you get your weekly shop from a big chain supermarket, 45% said that they visited their local market at least once a month - How great is that?!

And whilst it’s undeniable that the supermarket giants are king for convenience, 75% of you guys told us that you are bored are what you see there and love to discover interesting new products and support independent trade. So is the future of the high street all that cloudy?

With 2.5 billion internet users across the globe, we are constantly driven by what we see, read and who we talk to on the internet. You might be reading this blog on some kind of mobile device, and chances are you Tweet, Facebook your friends, and Instagram all your pictures quicker than you can say ‘Valencia’ (that’s an photo filter - for those of you not so versed in the terms of the insta-world). It’s quick and it’s accessible, and for many retailers, it’s ideal. The power of the ‘click-and-buy’ has made shopping online easier than ever, and it’s predicted that by 2015 90% of music, 70% of books and 40% of electricals will be bought over the internet. 

That sounds like pretty bad news for the high street, right? Well actually, no. 50% of you guys told us that you rarely or never shop online, choosing to pound the pavements and take to the high street to pick up your weekly shop. What’s more, every single one of you guys that took part in our questionnaire told us that they wanted to see more independent retailers on our high streets.

So is the high street really dying, or is it just that our ideas about what we want to see there are radically changing? Despite living our lives on the internet, retail experts have insisted on a continued desire for bricks-and-mortar shops. We are humans after all, not robots (well, for now anyway), and social interaction as well as the opportunity to look at, touch and smell a product remains a huge pull of the physical retail experience. 

Retailers have responded to this by adopting experiential shopping destinations; places that incorporate the virtual social world into the the physical retail shop. These shops are no longer solely focused on the transaction, but instead aim to offer a social experience which is both entertaining and pleasurable for the shopper. Think about the last time you visited your local high street. Was there some kind of interactive experience? Did you tweet about something you saw there? Chances are you didn’t just walk in, make your purchase and leave; shoppers now expect destinations which are both fun and interactive to shop at.

We think this is great. At Kitchen Table Projects we’re all about championing the high street, and think that it’s really important to enhance the retail experience, not only for our customers, but for our artisans, too. We’re creating a space for artisans to share their stories with the people who can’t wait to discover them, and to collaborate with other producers. Experience is at the heart of everything we do, and we believe that everything is better when we work together.

But do you agree with what we’re saying, or do you really think that the high street is on it’s way out? Do you live for online shopping or are you in love with independents? We want to know what you want to see on your high street so we can create a food hub that you love to shop at, buying the food that you love to eat. You can help us do this by sharing your thoughts here, or if you’re just curious to find out some more interesting facts from our foodie research, then head on over here. We want to revolutionise retail, and with your help, we can be one step closer to doing so!

Top Picks: London's Best Independent Delis

We’ve all been there. Grabbing a Starbucks before dashing for the tube; popping up the road to pick up your meal deal from Tescos at lunchtime; ducking into one of the seventy-seven London branches of Nandos (yup, Londoners really love their chicken) for a quick bite on the way home from work. With a new chain eatery popping up on just about every street across London, eating out and buying your food on the go has become more convenient than ever. In fact, in a high street dominated with big-guy chains and supermarket giants, it can be easy to forget about the capital’s thriving independent scene. Kitchen Table Projects love discovering quirky new coffee shops and delis, and supporting their unique menus, thoughtful service and quality produce. And we’re not alone. 75% of the foodies that filled out our ongoing survey said they were bored of what they were seeing in the supermarket, and 72% of you were ready to try something new. So this week, we’ve put together a list of our go-to deli’s across London (and one not-so-local favourite!)

The All-In-One: Greensmiths (Waterloo)

With a Butcher (ran by the amazing guys from  The Ginger Pig - check them out if you haven’t already), Baker, Greengrocer, Coffee Specialist, Wine Merchant, as well as in an in-house cheesemonger and a whole host of grocery and dairy products in stock AND a delicious cafe, Greensmiths is a little deli with a helluva lot to offer. Branded as a local independent supermarket, this little gem is sure to give even the most established high street giant a run for their money with its attention to detail, passion for its produce, and delicious cafe fare. A must for anyone looking for convenience with a conscience.

The Brilliant Butchers: Dugard and Daughters (Herne Hill)

This family-run butchers nestled in the heart of South London is bursting with pride for their produce, and are really passionate about the future of independent shopping in London and beyond. On the butcher side of the business you can find anything from Rare Breed cuts sourced from small English farms, to a wide selection of poultry, game, lamb and pork, all sustainably sourced. And be sure to check our their Aladdin's cave of deli and store cupboard products; a selection that will be sure to make foodies and store cupboard hoarders alike weak at the knees.

The Unique: The Dry Goods Store (Maida Vale)

We love the unique concept of this cute little deli in West London. The Dry Goods Store have embraced a more traditional shopping experience where you buy grocery items by weight. This means busting the time-old problem of half-used packets that sit in the cupboard for months, as well as encouraging a more sustainable shopping experience where shoppers reuse their packaging and reduce their waste. Like us, they love independents, and are keen to champion skilled artisans from London and beyond. They hold some cracking events, too - follow their tweetings to find out what they’ve got coming up soon.

The ‘Viva Espania’ - Brindisa (London Bridge)

We might not have their weather, but Brindisa’s Deli at Borough Market brings a taste of the Mediterranean sunshine to London, even on the rainiest, dreariest days. This eye-catching deli offers something for all lovers of spanish gastronomy, including hints and recipe tips for creating your own authentic tapas at home. Sounds good to us...pass us a Sangria!

The Italian Job - The Italian Farmers (Finsbury Park)

Continuing your Mediterranean foodie journey, make a beeline for The Italian Farmers at Stroud Green. Offering authentic fresh and store cupboard Italian staples shipped direct from farms across Italy, this charming deli is super keen to support authentic Italian produce, attempting to combat the large counterfeit Italian produce market both here in the UK and in Italy. They offer some great events and tasting evenings too - be sure to check out their website to find out more.

The ‘Get the Greek’ - The Life Goddess Deli (Bloomsbury)

We love this little Deli in Bloomsbury, which aims to make great Greek food a defining feature of London’s gastronomic map. They believe that cultivating, preparing and sharing food is a ritual, and that food is a symbol of respect, gratitude, friendship and love. Selling great traditional produce, The Life Goddess aims to import this into everything they do. London breakfast-lovers, make sure you check out their breakfast menu!

The W11 - Daylesford Farm (Notting Hill)

This Deli is jam-packed with local produce sourced from their farm’s market garden, as well as fresh produce daily from their butcher, creamery and bakery.They’ve been farming organically for over 30 years, too, and love drawing out the process of farm to fork so their customers know exactly what they’re putting in their mouths. Unfortunately their W11 branch will be closed for the summer whilst they make some exciting new improvements, but will be open again from September. Until then, we wait with anticipation...and grumbling stomachs!

The Hidden Gem - Swiss Cottage Grocers (Swiss Cottage)

Tucked away on Finchley Road, this charming Grocers offers an amazing array of organic fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as a number of store cupboard essentials. Prices are fair and there's a little trunk at the front for good seasonal deals. Check it out if you’re in the market (excuse the pun) for some quality, delicious ingredients for your next summer evening dinner party.

The Out of London - The Hungry Guest (Petworth, West Sussex)

Jump on a train this weekend and head off to the beautiful West Sussex, where you can find this amazing Deli. Nestled in the heart of the South Downs in the sleepy market town of Petworth, The Hungry Guest serves delicious freshly-baked breads, tasty lunches, homemade cakes and coffee, as well as boasting a wholesale artisan bakery and food shop, complete with its own butchery, cheese room and catering service (phew.) They’re serious about food and sourcing local produce, and love making sure their customers leave full and happy. Brunch, anyone?

Have we missed something out? Tweet us your faves @KitchTablePro!

Your July Store Cupboard

July is in full swing and, much to our surprise, the sun has decided to make a regular appearance in our sweaty London skies. And when the sun comes out at KTP HQ, there’s one thing that’s in regular supply in the office (apart from the odd lobster-faced sunbathing disaster): ice cream, and lots of it. This month at Kitchen Table Projects, we’ve been scouring the web for some fruity iced treats to cool us off when the temperature reaches more significant figures.  And what makes a better treat than one that uses some great seasonal British fruit? Cherries, raspberries, blueberries, as well as last month’s strawberry are all great examples of British produce that are best eaten in July. We think this Raspberry Ripple ice cream looks far too tasty to resist, and it’s really simple to make too- you don’t have to own a fancy ice cream maker, and only takes half an hour to whip up (although you’ll need to wait 3 hours to freeze before you tuck in!) Once you’ve mastered the ripple, you could have a go at this slightly more adventurous blueberry ice cream, but if you fancy a real challenge, then this cherry ripple and almond crunch ice cream makes for a fun, boozy alternative to its raspberry sister. You’ll need an ice cream maker for both of these recipes, but don’t worry, you won’t need to spend a fortune to ignite your inner ice cream connoisseur. Available in a few sizes, we think this offering from Magimix would do just the trick, or opt for this more purse-friendly alternative from Andrew James. They’re pretty easy machines to get the hang of- you’ll be calling yourself Mr Whippy in no time! We think ice cream is great, but when the temperature does hit over 25 degrees, we’ll be making a batch of these artisan ice lolly’s from the guys at the London based Ice Kitchen. We’ll definitely be trying the Strawberries and Cream variety, but on a hot friday afternoon after work, the only thing on our minds will be these Mojito lollys- the perfect way to kick off the weekend.

We’re bound to get brain freeze from eating all these iced goodies, but there’s loads of other (slightly warmer) ways to be eating seasonally this July. Don’t be fooled into thinking that apples only make an appearance in the Autumn, as the British Bramley apple waits ready to be picked and devoured throughout July. Rather than whipping up the favourite Blighty apple pie, we’ve been popping on our aprons and baking a batch of these Bramley and Walnut scones. While they’re perfect with a dollop of clotted cream and some raspberry jam (FYI, we’re firmly in the ‘cream first, jam second’ scone-etiquette camp), we think they’re just as good spread with butter and enjoyed with a cuppa. And if the sun does disappear (which, let’s face it, is probably fairly likely), we think that this sausage and apple bake would be just thing to cheer up a rainy Sunday afternoon indoors.

We love supporting British growers, and understand how important it is to eat locally sourced produce- but that doesn’t stop us from indulging in the odd exotic treat from time to time. Apricots, Melon, Kiwi Fruit, Nectarine and Peach may all be imported into our supermarkets, but if you are going to eat them, now is the time. They’re super juicy, super sweet, and super delicious, either greedily gobbled up on their own or in a sweet dish to be devoured in the  sunshine. To make sure you get the freshest fruit from reliable and ethical sources head to your local fruit and veg market- our London faves have to be Borough, Brixton and Marylebone.

What have you been eating this month? Tweet us @KitchTablePro with the hashtag #EatFresh

Picture by Flickr User Padsyms and WikiCommons User NobbiP