How we define “food service for a sustainable future”:
Flavorful food that’s healthy and economically viable for all, produced through practices that respect farmers, workers, and animals; nourish the community; and replenish our shared natural resources for future generations.
Bon Appétit has long been the role model for responsible sourcing in the food service industry.
Our path toward greater sustainability started as a quest for flavor. When you cook everything from scratch, you want the freshest ingredients.
That led us to launch our Farm to Fork program back in 1999 — long before local food became the welcome trend it is today. Our years of working directly with farmers and ranchers have opened our eyes to the many problems of our modern food supply: while it is abundant and cheap, it has many hidden costs.
We believe we can deliver fantastic food and wonderful service while also helping make our food system better. It’s a tall order, but we do love a challenge. As Margaret Mead once said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
Lots of companies have jumped on the local bandwagon. We’re proud to say we were the first to get its wheels turning in food service. Through our Farm to Fork program — launched in 1999, long before the word locavore entered the dictionary — we forged direct relationships with our local growers. Each year, we’ve spent tens of millions of dollars on local purchasing. And in addition to our daily support, since 2005 we’ve hosted our annual Eat Local Challenge, which uses a 100% local meal as a starting point to talk about sustainable agriculture with our guests.
Our chefs strive to source at least 20% of their ingredients from small, owner-operated farms, ranches, and artisan producers within 150 miles of their kitchens.
The Earth’s oceans are being emptied at a dizzying rate, and the aquaculture that has sprung up to replace wild fish on our plates comes with its own set of problems. We were the first food service company to address this crisis, and we’ve made the most comprehensive commitment to sustainable seafood of any national restaurant or food company to date. Supporting responsibly sourced seafood has become more than a food standard. It is part of our culture, part of who we are.
For all seafood purchases, wild and farmed, we adhere to the sustainability guidelines for commercial buyers as outlined by the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch® program.
At Bon Appétit, we believe that to be sustainable, the U.S. food system will require major changes in how the animals we eat are raised.
Our purchasing philosophy when it comes to animal products is three-tiered: We believe in supporting small farms, rewarding responsible mid-size ones, and using our market power to influence the big producers to improve their practices.
We are proud to have the highest, farthest-reaching animal welfare standards in our industry.
How we eat is affecting the planet, but a handful of simple dietary choices and practices can have the same impact as switching from driving a large SUV to a more fuel-efficient sedan. Greenhouse gases created by the food system — including production, distribution, and waste — are responsible for one-third of global emissions. At Bon Appétit, we see that as opportunity to make positive change.
When Bon Appétit started our Low Carbon Diet program in 2007 — making us the first restaurant company to connect food and climate change — it was with specific targets in mind for reducing our carbon emissions over five years. In 2015, we moved from a diet aimed at a quick reduction to a long-term, sustained way of living. Enter the Low Carbon Lifestyle, a new set of commitments that we can live for the foreseeable future and continue our dedication to reducing the climate-changing impacts of our food choices. We consulted with food and climate change experts across the country, from the Environmental Working Group to the Union of Concerned Scientists and Rainforest Alliance.
At Bon Appétit Management Company, we believe that farmworkers should not only be honored for their contribution to our food system, but enjoy the same rights and protections as employees in other occupations.
More and more Americans are asking questions about where their food comes from, but few go so far as to think about who picked it, and under what conditions.