CASE

How we’re putting plants forward

The Economist Intelligence Unit recently challenged companies to “harness ideas that can make a meaningful impact on the sustainability of the global food system.” As a global company, we embrace that responsibility. We live it through our people. We’ve been developing services, like our Power Plant food service, that will help us, and our customers improve people’s health while caring for the planet.

US case - plants

2000

+

diners

Full service

breakfast, lunch and dinner

-25

%

meat after 1 month

Plant-powered change 

We designed Power Plant to create a more sustainable approach by using more plant-based ingredients and reducing focus on animal products. It’s not pure veganism. It is about meeting an increasing demand and shifting the emphasis to plants in our restaurants – sometimes in surprising and subtle ways. 

One of our head chefs, Matt Yuen, was a frontrunner by introducing this approach at our customer, Riot Games in LA. With Riot Games, Matt has been pioneering plant-based recipes using seasonal, fresh ingredients, since 2018. 

“Through his creativity and deep understanding of his audience, Chef Matt made changes to our menu that not only decreased animal proteins, but accomplished it without any of our employees missing a beat for an entire year. After learning about his incredible work during Earth Week 2019, we have been inspired to continue the momentum and have started the journey towards becoming a carbon neutral company."

Sue-Min Koh, Riot Games Karma Manager
Enjoying great food – while impacting sustainability, health and well-being  

One of the biggest benefits to Riot Games was that they were able to significantly reduce their weekly meat order. Livestock farming accounts for around 14.5% of global greenhouse gasses, so reducing meat can have a significant impact on the environment. Matt realised he could have a real impact at Riot Games – a headquarter of about 2,000 people ordering 2,500 kg meat a week. 

Within one month with plant-based food, they’d cut the order by 650 kg. That was one obvious improvement, but there were cultural changes too. As Riot Games employees adapted to the new menu, they discovered that eating plant-based food didn’t mean being shortchanged on taste. 

“Not many noticed the difference, actually,” says Matt. “I took this as a good thing. It’s a way of leading a culture shift without seeming ‘nannying’. Your people are enjoying great food, and you’re also making an impact in terms of sustainability, health and wellbeing.” 

Looking to the future 


Our food services experts are committed to the highest industry standards, while also adapting to the latest trends. We like to think ahead. Our insights can help guide customers toward positive change for their organisational culture, reducing their environmental impact, and critically, giving their people a healthier experience at work. 

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