CHARLOTTE N.C., April 22, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- To coincide with Earth Month in April, Eurest initiated and organized a series of special Earth Table events at accounts across the US to demonstrate the company's commitment to wellness, including the sourcing of sustainable, seasonal and local produce.
Every year since its humble beginnings in 1970, Earth Day has been celebrated on April 22. Today, Earth Day has evolved into Earth Month, where companies, groups and associations across the planet celebrate the concept of creating a better and healthier natural, physical, social and cultural environment.
For the foodservice industry, embracing this ideal not only means exploring more responsible and sustainable methods of catching and preparing food, but taking steps to reduce its carbon footprint. It's a serious commitment to the environment that Eurest has been making since 2006, when the company first demonstrated its support for the local food economy with Eat Local – a company-wide initiative to purchase food items from small to mid-size regional farmers.
In addition to participating in the implementation of a variety of ground-breaking policies that include committing to healthier oceans through purchasing sustainable seafood and promoting farm animal welfare through the use of cage-free eggs within its Sustainability Platform, Eurest has adopted many key sustainable initiatives into the foundation of their culture, such as Menus of Change and Imperfectly Delicious Produce.
Today, the concepts of seasonality, sustainability and local produce sourcing are so ingrained in Eurest's culture that, quite literally, every day is Earth Day within the organization. Therefore, it was no great surprise when Eurest Sr. Vice President, Culinary Development and Executive Chef Chris Ivens-Brown toured around various accounts once again, showcasing a series of Earth Table events at accounts across the country.
Scheduled to coincide with Earth Month, the standard Chef's Table that many clients already used to increase customer participation and encourage engagement at their campus restaurants and cafés was replaced by an Earth Table. Designed to showcase chefs' flair, creativity and culinary talents, Earth Table menus were designed to inspire awareness of and appreciation for the environment while offering seasonally-inspired restaurant quality cuisine made with fresh, local ingredients.
The series is not just a great opportunity to introduce customers to the many benefits of eating responsibly-harvested and locally-sourced food, but to demonstrate its company-wide commitment to wellness. At each Earth Table event, Chef Chris teamed up with the account's in-house executive chefs as well as Eurest executives to prepare, present and serve lunch. "This program isn't just about the food," says Eurest's CEO, Tony McDonald, "It is a great opportunity for our corporate chefs to demonstrate that Eurest's senior leadership stands behind the company's values of providing sustainable, seasonal and local produce. It is also an opportunity to be out there in front of our clients, managing the business in person and not from behind a desk."
Across the board, throughout Eurest's accounts, the huge buzz and excitement among customers created by the Earth Table series resulted in incremental customer participation and happy clients. In many instances, even customers who didn't purchase were still interested enough in the promotion to stop by, ask questions and pick up information. "Earth Table reinforces what we have noticed for a while – that today's customers know what fresh means, they know what sustainable means, and they are prepared to pay a premium price for that difference because they understand the value of what it contributes to their health," McDonald says.
Of course, the benefits of eating more healthily and responsibly are not just limited to individuals. Employers – especially large-scale corporations – have a vested interest in developing a healthier workforce. Healthier associates mean more productivity; fewer days lost through sickness each year, fewer chronic illnesses and lower insurance premiums. "Our end-to-end wellness initiatives differentiate us from our competitors," McDonald says. "We take our responsibility to the environment, to our associates and our clients very seriously. We have already witnessed big change in our industry, but the biggest steps are yet to come."
About Eurest
The globally recognized Eurest launched in 1996 in the US and provides dining services to local, regional and national companies within the Business & Industry markets, including employee dining centers, on-site catering, vending, executive dining rooms, and other managed services. Eurest is proud to serve the world's most respected and successful corporations, including many of the Fortune 500.
Eurest is a $1.4 billion food and vending organization with 1935 locations and more than 15,500 associates throughout the US. Eurest serves more than 705,000 customers daily and is a division of NC-based Compass Group North America.