Hospitality business WSH has partnered with Bidfood to introduce Legghorn – a supplier of lower-carbon, high welfare chicken mince – into the foodservice sector.

Legghorn will supply the foodservice sector with chicken mince from 420-day-old breeder hen meat, often considered a ‘by-product’ of the chicken industry, which has just 1.31kg of carbon per kilo of mince (1).

The hens are antibiotic-free and are only vaccinated for Salmonella and Newcastle disease and come from Red Tractor-certified farms, a recognised welfare standard.

Pre-industrialisation, Italian kitchens prized gallina vecchiameat from mature hens, with a depth of flavour that was often used to make ragu.

Full of flavour, the meat can also be used for recipes such as Bolognese, kofte, meatballs, burgers, chicken Kiev and chicken royale.

This new partnership follows a successful trial at a number of WSH brands, including BaxterStorey, Searcys and BM Caterers who have all trialled the product across a number of locations and events, including at the BaxterStorey Obsessed Expo, a Searcys ESG Summit and a BM client ESG roundtable in May.

A soft launch of the product in June has seen it added to menus at eight WSH locations, with a ramp-up over the summer in collaboration with Bidfood.

The introduction comes via Bidfood’s Open Doors programme, launched in 2023 to support small businesses to succeed in the foodservice sector by sharing knowledge, guidance and insight, access to customer showcase opportunities, and help with market visibility. The programme has engaged more than 450 suppliers since launching, with a key focus on suppliers delivering the most progressive and innovative offerings.

Kevin Dunford, Head of Food & UK Agriculture Procurement at WSH, said: “We’re really happy to be supporting Legghorn’s highly nutritious but still delicious approach to tackling the challenges faced across our food system. As part of our Second Nature ESG goals, this is yet another innovative way to help us reduce our carbon footprint and a smarter way to honour the whole animal. The chef community across our brands have come together to work alongside procurement to really focus on higher welfare and reducing carbon in our meat supply chain. As an industry we need to think differently to solve the challenges we face.”

Richard Murray, Founder of Legghorn, said: “I’m incredibly grateful to be partnering with WSH and Bidfood to bring Legghorn to the foodservice sector. Their belief in our goal – to make better use of what we already have, and to reduce carbon without compromising on quality – has been instrumental in getting this off the ground. It’s exciting to see chefs embracing Legghorn not just for its sustainability, but also for its flavour and versatility.”

Andrew Allen, Entrepreneur-in-Residence and lead on Bidfood’s Open Doors Programme, said: “The Open Doors Programme has always been centred on creating a system that enables the most progressive and innovative suppliers to get to market, and to Bidfood customers. From the first conversation, it was clear Legghorn was a perfect supplier to support, particularly given the fit with WSH’s goals.”