Pushing Your Vendors

How to get affordable local, organic foods for your meetings and events

Session Objectives

• Present a case study showing the process of an attempt to create more sustainable F&B for meetings and events

• Demonstrate what the team of Greg Christian Consulting, Dallas Convention Center, Centerplate Catering, and PCMA were able to accomplish and implement for the PCMA 2010 Annual Meeting

• Discuss the challenges faced and what the team was not able to accomplish/implement along with how to overcome these challenges for future meetings and events

A Conversation and an Idea

• How it all started – Meredith Rollins at PCMA• PCMA environmental mission statement:

– “…committed to educating members on green meeting practices, conducting meetings and organization in an environmentally friendly way, and moving our industry to a more ecologically responsible future”

The Assignment

• To incorporate more sustainability initiatives into the F&B service for the annual meeting

• Bring together the facility, the food service provider, the meeting organizer, and an outside consultant to complete the assignment

• Make sure the process is demonstrated to meeting attendees so attendees can implement the process in their own meetings/events

GCC’s Vision

• Menu Development– Integrate local, seasonal, and/or organic items into the menus

• Local, Seasonal, and Organic Procurement– Include food maps and farm descriptions to display during

meeting

• Manage, Divert, and Reduce F&B Waste

GCC’s Steps

• Incorporate APEX Green Meetings Standards (those that apply to F&B) – determine caterer’s current greening initiatives via questionnaire

• Initial meeting with key F&B players

• Gather information/specifics about menu, food quantities, and sources

• Research creative solutions

Initial Challenges

• Geographic– GCC in Chicago; caterer and venue in Dallas– January in Dallas

• Menu development stage– Already set before GCC became involved

• Budget

Menu Development

Ideal Strategy Reality

Involved at start of development Involved after menus were mostly developed and approved

Shape menu according to local and seasonal availability

Find sustainable versions of ingredients for approved menus

If sustainable options found at an acceptable price, integrate them into menu

If sustainable options found at an acceptable price, make

suggestions for alterations to menus

Local, Seasonal, & Organic Procurement

Mental Model: Better Living Through Chemistry

Local, Seasonal, & Organic Procurement

Ideal Strategy• Organize what and how much F&B needed to be bought• Map/research current suppliers to see if any are

currently local, seasonal, and/or organic• Research clean food in Texas and surrounding areas

Local, Seasonal, & Organic Procurement

Reality• Not in Dallas to map foods• January in Dallas• Food quantities• Cost constraints

Local, Seasonal, & Organic Procurement

Reality• Dairy• Fruits and vegetables• Beverages• Olive Oil• Honey• Chocolate

Local, Seasonal, & Organic Procurement

Reality• Chicken

– Whole versus cuts

• Beef– Short ribs versus alternate cuts– Bone-in versus boneless

Waste Management, Diversion, & Reduction

Mental Model: Take, Make, Waste

Waste Management, Diversion, & Reduction

Ideal Strategy• Current capabilities• Determine where improvements can be made• Research laws around recycling and composting• Find recycling and compost haulers• Implement waste system, including education

Waste Management, Diversion, & Reduction

Reality• Dallas Convention Center has an extensive recycling program• DCC would be handling food donation• Bulk condiments• Reusable dishware, cutlery, and linens• FOG is being recycled• No composting

Conditions of the Game

Waste Management, Diversion, & Reduction

Reality• GCC’s Focus: Composting

– Find locations to take compost– Find haulers– Storage of compost– Education around handling compost

Marketing Materials: Food Maps and Farm Descriptions

• Materials could not be created as envisioned for a variety of reasons

• However, telling the story is still crucial to the process

– Sales and marketing

– Lessons learned

Suggestions: How to Successfully Green F&B for an Event

• Find out what items are seasonal near your geographic meeting location and create menus around these foods: http://www.nrdc.org/health/foodmiles/

Suggestions: How to Successfully Green F&B for an Event

Suggestions: How to Successfully Green F&B for an Event

• Sustainability requirements must be implemented from the beginning…

Put these requirements into your RFPs.

Suggestions: How to Successfully Green F&B for an Event• Examples of what to include in RFPs:

– Request copies of facility waste management and purchasing policies

– Divert certain amount of waste from landfills

– Require auditing and tracking of pre- and post-consumer waste

– Require non-alcoholic beverages be served in bulk

Suggestions: How to Successfully Green F&B for an Event• Examples of what to include in RFPs:

– Minimum amount of local, seasonal, and/or organic food purchased by vendor/food service provider

• Specify by category– Vegan and vegetarian entrée options available at each meal and as main

entrée at some meals

Suggestions: How to Successfully Green F&B for an Event• Determine what is most important to you and your attendees• Determine what your minimum sustainable requirements are for F&B:

challenge your vendors and suppliers to be creative to meet or exceed your requirements!

• Learn from each event to improve what you can implement in the future

The Power of the Meeting Professional

Source: Energy Information Administration

The Power of the Meeting Professional

• $5 billion is spent annually on catering (Source: First Research, Catering Services Industry, Quarterly Update 4/21/2008)

• You can play a large part in improving the environmental impact of the food service industry.

Green Guide: Sustainable Food and Beverage

• Any questions?• Email: greg@gregchristianconsulting.com• Website: http://www.gregchristianconsulting.com• Phone: 312-656-8489