3 Easy Ways To Make Your Food Business More Sustainable

Julie Starr • May 21, 2020



As a food business, sustainability should be at the heart of your brand. Customers and diners are savvier than ever with an acute need to know where the food that they are eating is coming from. They don’t want to be eating New Zealand lamb that has a mammoth carbon footprint when they know that you can source lamb from the farm an hour’s drive away. Being eco-friendly is a vital part of business nowadays, and it’s no different for the food industry. Take a look at how you can ensure that your food business is as sustainable as possible.

Street Food

The most on-trend food businesses at the moment are those that use local, often organic produce, that emulates authentic cuisine. Street food is seen as a rustic and accessible form of catering that many different sorts of diners are tapping into. The variety of food on offer is exciting – Mexican tacos, Vietnamese pho or vegan gyros. To maintain sustainability, think about the sort of mobile unit you may use. By following this ultimate guide for custom canopy tents , you can market yourself and your brand effectively while having a sturdy, resilient and reusable outlet for your food. Think about your ingredients and link up with fellow sellers at the events and foodie markets that you attend. Local cheesemongers and butchers will relish being part of your enterprise and it will save the food miles. Push this facet of your business to your diners as they will appreciate your eco-credentials.

Packaging

The worst way to be unsustainable is by using excess packaging and packaging that is damaging to the environment. If you are selling burgers, open sandwiches or meals, there are plenty of recyclable plates and tubs that you can serve from. You could even source biodegradable packaging for your cuisine . You also need to consider the packaging of the ingredients you buy. Plastic does real damage to the environment so you need to steer clear of this as much as possible. Encourage reuse amongst your customers. If you serve coffee, have a money off incentive to encourage your customers to enjoy your caramel latte in their own reusable cup.

Respect Workers

If you are sourcing ingredients from overseas because there is no local alternative such as chocolate, raw cacao, coconut or spices, don’t just ensure the food and packaging is eco-friendly. You also need to respect the workers that are producing your product. Research the farms, plants, and companies you deal with and ensure that they pay their workers a fair wage. You don’t want to be funding or contributing to the harm or mistreatment of human beings. While this may feel a little abstract, you need to remain socially conscious.

Being part of the food industry can be challenging in these uncertain times. The economy is looking less stable than in previous years and you need to ensure that you can show off the benefits of your enterprise to your diners. With a sustainable attitude, your business can thrive.

 

How To Identify Companies That Match Your Values

By Julie Starr • 22 Apr, 2024
As you try to develop a sustainable brand , you need to consider what other companies you work with. These could be collaboration opportunities or suppliers and vendors that help you develop the product or service you want to sell. But, many companies may not share your values, so how can you identify the right companies that meet your eco-friendly attitude? Make Use Of Marketing Platforms It's frustrating to reach out to multiple companies to identify collaboration opportunities. For one, there’s no guarantee you even get a response, and cold emailing or other measures are rarely successful. However, you can use marketing platforms and their many features and resources to companies or influencers that align more closely with what you feel is right. Various platforms offer unique options that enable you to whittle down possible companies until you find the perfect match, saving you plenty of time. Research Their Website However, you can’t just leap into any partnership since these platforms may have outdated information, or companies could have selected everything they think will get them a partnership. As with any approach, extra research is essential. Once you’ve identified a company that seems to match your values, it’s with checking out their website. Look at their blog and customer reviews to get an idea of where their ideals lie so you can get a more transparent picture. Meet With Companies Businesses can also meet directly with potential companies when they have established the possibility of a partnership. Whether you’re looking for a better green transport service or need central laboratory services , having face-to-face conversations is a must. You can open discussions via video calls before arranging an in-person meeting which gives you the chance to visit their location, such as an office or warehouse, to ensure that you aren’t stepping into something you may regret. Look For Accreditation and Certification Modern businesses require certification and accreditation to back up claims they are the most sustainable or to prove they have adhered to necessary compliance laws and regulations. Usually, you can find this on their website but there could also be PR pieces on various industry news sites that can prove the company has obtained the necessary certificates. Identifying these certificates will add confidence they are the right company to work with. Offer Value To Them While you hope the potential partnership brings value to your company, you also need to provide value to them. This point is key for strategic collaboration as it otherwise means you take without offering anything in return. Consider what your business can do, such as increase their awareness or help them develop new research projects. In doing so, you will have a mutually beneficial partnership that helps both companies achieve the goals they have outlined for the year. Values and Value Every partnership or collaboration should bring value. This value should apply to your business and any partnerships but also your customers. If you can identify companies that align with your brand values, you’ll have an easier time developing a positive relationship that ensures you stay on track to meet your goals.

Fresh Content: Where Do You Get The Green For Your Green Business?

By Julie Starr • 19 Apr, 2024
If you’re looking to start up a business that puts environmental responsibility at the forefront of how it operates, or that aims to offer new eco-friendly products and services to the market, then you need to make sure you have a plan for it. In part, you need to think about where the money is going to come from to help you get the business up and running. Here, we’re going to look at a few examples of places you can get the funding your green business needs. Finding like-minded investors A lot of capital in the startup spaces comes from investors who will take the time to look over a host of prospective businesses that are looking to get their start and will choose those that best align with their goals. Finding an investor isn’t always easy, so start by networking in the right professional spaces, especially those that might built specifically for entrepreneurs and business owners in the green sector. There are websites that can help pair your business up with investors, as well, but this can be a fairly competitive space. You want to have the room to be able to talk to potential investors about the profitability of your business, as well as the values and dedication to eco-friendliness that drive it. Getting hold of some credit The other traditional means of funding any business is to get a loan that can allow you to cover all of the necessary upfront costs, and running costs until you’re able to get yours up, running, and making money. Banks were the typical method of borrowing money like this, originally, but as banks got bigger, they lent less to smaller businesses, and as such, commercial funding solutions rose up to take their place, to some degree. If you’re going to try to borrow money, then you need to ensure that you are completely prepared for the application process, which can necessitate a business plan, which is designed, in part, to help show the viability and path to profitability to any lenders. Finding green grants and other financial incentives The push towards greener businesses and more sustainable industries isn’t something that’s only on the minds of a few business owners. There are always state-funded and non-profit-funded initiatives that aim to help those with green businesses on their mind get their start. You should take a look at the range of green business grants and other funding options set up, be it locally, in your state, or federally. Some of these funds and grants will be set up for businesses tackling climate change, ecosystem change, and environmental waste in specific ways, but there are always more grants to keep an eye out for, so make sure you learn how to write a grant proposal well. Finding those who are like-minded, either in seeing the profit potential in your business, or in getting behind the values of it, can help you not only get the funding you need, but it can lead to very advantageous relationships in the future, as well.
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