B CORP – A ROBUST MEASUREMENT AND INSPIRING MOVEMENT

Richard Pike and Andy Stephens, Cook Trading Ltd

On the fourth day of the BFFF Business Conference 2021 we were joined by BFFF member Cook with Richard Pike and Andy Stephens providing an interesting presentation on what it means to hold B Corp status.

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PLASTIC TAX & ERP CONSULTATION

Dick Searle, The Packaging Federation

Many members will be aware that there is currently a Government Consultation underway on the proposed Extended Producer Responsibility Scheme (EPR). This will replace the current PRN system on the recovery and recycling of packaging.

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SOLVING PROBLEMS THROUGH SURPLUS

Sally Wake, Company Shop Group

BFFF member Company Shop not only sponsored two days of the BFFF Business Conference they also contributed to our Sustainability Day on Thursday.

We were joined by Sally Wake, Head of Strategic Relationship, who provided an overview of the role that Company Shop fulfil.

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THE CARBON CHALLENGE

Danielle Mulder, Carbon Intelligence and Annelie Selander,  Nomad

On the BFFF Business Conference Sustainability Day we were joined by Danielle Mulder from Carbon Intelligence and Annelie Selander from Nomad who explained the challenges and processes for understanding your carbon footprint.

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THE FUTURE OF FOOD SERVICE

Simon Stenning, Future Foodservice

Simon Stenning joined our Business Conference on Wednesday, 21^st April 2021 and gave a thought-provoking view on the future of Food Service as we start to emerge from the latest lockdown.

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OUR CSR JOURNEY: DOING BUSINESS THE RIGHT WAY

Hugo Mahoney, Brakes

We hear the word ‘Sustainability’ almost constantly today in every walk of business life. Whether this is on packaging, supply chains or indeed raw materials, so it was good to hear at first hand from a major wholesaler what it means for them.

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SHINING A LIGHT ON FOOD SERVICE

Gavin Kelly, Lumina Intelligence

We were joined by Gavin Kelly of Lumina Intelligence who provided an in-depth overview of the Out of Home Market.

The impact of Covid on the sector has been severe with most sub-sectors seeing unprecedented declines due to various Government restrictions with the overall market seeing a decline of just under 49%.

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THE LEGAL LANDSCAPE IN FOODSERVICE: MEETING THE CHALLENGES

Andrew Selley, Bidfood

Navigating the complexities of running a major business is complex at the best of times. Balancing the needs of customers, employees, suppliers plus the constant pressure on the balance sheet is a daunting task but when you have to do this during a Pandemic combined with a raft of new Government regulations it adds a level of complexity that is beyond comprehension.

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BFFF member Company Shop not only sponsored two days of the BFFF Business Conference they also contributed to our Sustainability Day on Thursday.

We were joined by Sally Wake, Head of Strategic Relationship, who provided an overview of the role that Company Shop fulfil.

Sally explained that whilst food re-distribution is seen as something quite new, Company Shop have been in existence for 50 years. This provides them with a wealth of experience and knowledge in how surplus food can be used.

Sally explained they see surplus just as ‘good products’ in the ‘wrong place’. Whilst a high percentage of the products sold through the 16 stores need some form of manual intervention to ensure they comply legally, e.g. new labelling, this ensures the product is legally compliant when sold through the member only stores.

Sally also explained the ethos behind the 6 Community Shops all located in some of the most deprived areas of the country. Those shops supported by Company Shop, and a number of industry partners, provide support and food to some of the most vunerable in society. These stores provide a full range of product for their target consumer with low prices of staple food including fresh fruit and vegetables. This is unlike the Company Shop which Sally described as being more like TK Maxx – never sure what you are going to find.

Now owned by Biffa it is clear that Company Shop will go from strength to strength – even now looking at manufacturing operations to identify waste that can be re-distributed by using their knowledge and skills built up over 50 years of doing the right thing.

The presentation from this year’s Frozen Food Business Conference will be made available to all attendees.  If you were not able to purchase a ticket, please contact Siobhan O’Callaghan.

We were joined by Gavin Kelly of Lumina Intelligence who provided an in-depth overview of the Out of Home Market.

The impact of Covid on the sector has been severe with most sub-sectors seeing unprecedented declines due to various Government restrictions with the overall market seeing a decline of just under 49%.

Despite this Gavin highlighted that some sectors had seen a positive impact such as Takeaway and specialist food and beverage stores like ‘high end’ butchers. This was driven by consumers wanting to replicate ‘eat out’ at home.

Gavin outlined that based upon data they have produced three possible scenarios called:

• Upbeat +40.5% growth over 2020
• Mid-core +31.8% growth over 2020
• Downbeat +20.2% growth over 2020

However, the recovery will look different from the past both in terms of the channels and players.

The disruption caused by the Pandemic will create winners who show innovation and flexibility.

Gavin also highlighted that technology is being adopted at an accelerated pace by consumers.

The presentation from this year’s Frozen Food Business Conference will be made available to all attendees.  If you were not able to purchase a ticket, please contact Siobhan O’Callaghan.

Navigating the complexities of running a major business is complex at the best of times. Balancing the needs of customers, employees, suppliers plus the constant pressure on the balance sheet is a daunting task but when you have to do this during a Pandemic combined with a raft of new Government regulations it adds a level of complexity that is beyond comprehension.

Andrew Selley, CEO of Bidfood, took the time out of his busy schedule to share insights on how his business is managing this.

As Andrew explained one of the key challenges was that many experts in areas covered by the various pieces of legislation that is coming at his company may have been furloughed over the last year.

The range of new or proposed legislation is vast from Natasha’s Law due to come into force in October 2021 to the Plastic Tax in April 2022, the ongoing discussion on HFSS, removal of red diesel subsidy in April 2022 and then the consultation on EPR.

Just the complexity of ensuring all the relevant data and information is available for Natasha’s Law has required the introduction of new processes and resources to manage.

Andrew is also clear that Bidfood have a duty to support small suppliers and to ensure all their customers large and small have the data they require.

Communication is key and as such Bidfood have teamed up with UK Hospitality to run webinars to help end users understand what is required.

The complexity to achieve this is possibly a foretaste of what may be required should mandatory calorie labelling come into effect – which is a distinct possibility.

Bidfood are already preparing for the Plastic Tax, EPR and DSR through their circular economy approach.

The presentation from this year’s Frozen Food Business Conference will be made available to all attendees.  If you were not able to purchase a ticket, please contact Siobhan O’Callaghan.

On the fourth day of the BFFF Business Conference 2021 we were joined by BFFF member Cook with Richard Pike and Andy Stephens providing an interesting presentation on what it means to hold B Corp status.

Richard painted the background to what B Corp is. The idea started in the USA with the simple premise that running a business should be based on a ‘force for good’ and with a purpose but that profit is not a ‘dirty’ word.

With over 4,000 companies Worldwide in 74 countries the concept is being adopted globally.

The start point is to have the ethos of B Corp included within the Articles of Association for each company. This not only shows commitment but provides a legal framework.

With an audit every 3 years it is an evolving process against which you can measure yourself as a business. Andy explained that the B Corp audit process is seen internally as a ‘critical and honest friend’.

The start point is the B Impact Assessment. This is where any company can measure their performance against a range of criteria – some 100,000 businesses already do this.

Andy went on to say that the average score companies get on this is 57, however, to achieve B Corp status you need to achieve a minimum of 80.

Within the audit undertaken by B Lab, the not for profit behind the B Corp movement, every three years a company is ranked for governance, worker engagement and treatment, community engagement, environment policy and performance, and customer interaction, with each section being assessed and scored. Richard explained this helps Cook focus on the areas that could be improved.

This is obviously something taken to heart by Cook who have seen their audit scores continually increase.

The presentation from this year’s Frozen Food Business Conference will be made available to all attendees.  If you were not able to purchase a ticket, please contact Siobhan O’Callaghan.