The trial, in partnership with food technology and sustainability specialists Foodsteps, assess the carbon impacts of 1,800 recipes sold at the NEC and ICC, labelling dishes as low carbon footprint on its menus.
The project comes in collaboration with a study conducted by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), which funded the project, and the University of Birmingham (UOB) on food sustainability labelling and behaviour change.
The NEC venue is using its digital screens to direct customers towards this sustainability information, allowing event goers to easily see the sustainable impact of each dish.
The new labels will feature in the caterer’s Edge restaurants at the NEC.
“Innovation is front and centre in our work across the live events industry,” says Marc Frankl, food and beverage director at Amadeus.
“We’ve been looking at carbon labelling for a while, but it is something we were able to implement quicker thanks to the input of WMCA.
We want to empower our visitors to make more sustainable choices and educate themselves about the carbon impact of food and this is a great step towards that.”
“We’re thrilled to be able to introduce this with the help of Foodsteps’ technology and we’re really interested to see how this labelling will affect customer’s behaviours.”
Amadeus caters for seven million visitors a year at the NEC Group’s five venues and more than 30 venues across the UK including visitor attractions, exhibition venues and conference centres.
“We have a strong focus on sustainability and we’re delighted to introduce this carbon labelling trial at the NEC and ICC,” says Ian Taylor, managing director for conventions & exhibitions at NEC Group.
“We know from customer feedback that our visitors love the quality of food and service at both venues, so we’re excited that our carbon labels will help them make low carbon choices and reduce their carbon footprint.”
It is the latest move in Amadeus’ work to cut carbon footprint across its venue portfolio, which also includes the Vox and Birmingham’s two live music arenas, Utilita Arena Birmingham and Resorts World Arena.