Amadeus has posted its best food waste figures to date as it puts an emphasis on sustainability at its venues.
After partnering with food donation scheme OLIO in July, Amadeus has saved more than 614,000 litres of water at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), which is enough to fill more than 7,600 baths or 2.7million cups of coffee.
The savings don’t stop there, with research suggesting that 4,110 portions of surplus food has been redistributed in the community, while 3.5 tonnes of CO2 emissions have been averted through the partnership.
The food redistribution service ensures that surplus pre-packaged food such as sandwiches, salads and sushi boxes from NEC halls are distributed to those in the local community.
Marc Frankl, food and beverage director, said: “We are thrilled to see how our partnership with OLIO has flourished over the first four months.
“Our partnership doesn’t just mean that food waste is reduced across our venues, it’s the impact it has on the local community which is so important to us. At Amadeus we always aim to uphold these values, supporting local communities. We pride ourselves on the statistic that 80 per cent of our suppliers found within a 30-mile radius.
“Credit must go to our staff who have really embraced this partnership and we can’t wait to see how it develops moving forward.”
The partnership is part of NEC Sustain – the venue’s all-encompassing sustainability programme. Hosting thousands of events in its venues each year, the NEC Group has been working hard to improve its sustainability footprint, working with its arenas, exhibitions, events partners and customers.
Amadeus currently boasts seven OLIO ‘Food Waste Heroes’ at the venue, who have helped 122 members of the local community with donations.
Delia Gadea, OLIO food waste heroes account manager, added: “It has been fantastic to see that our partnership with Amadeus and the NEC Group has been so successful and it’s testament to their level of commitment.
“They have ensured that food is easily accessible to the OLIO Food Waste Heroes volunteers, who collect and then distribute the surplus food in their local communities via the OLIO app. The local community is notified that food items are available on our app and are able to request the food, then visiting the volunteer’s house to pick up the food.
“Our main drive is to save good food from going to waste and we know that at the same time we are helping to bring communities together and support struggling families to put food on the table.”
OLIO is just one part of Amadeus’ sustainable solutions. 98 per cent of its disposable packaging spend is on sustainable products – be that recyclable, biodegradable or compostable.
