How to: Cater for today’s health conscious audience

Chelsea FC’s Events & Sales Manager Lucy Adamson (pictured) offers tips on food options for events in a time of keto, veganism and increasing consumer awareness of provenance…

Catering is one of the most important aspects for any venue. So it’s really important that we keep up with trends, paying close attention to what’s in demand, and making sure to reflect it in the range of menus and catering options we offer.  

Perhaps the two biggest trends we’ve seen in recent years are around healthy eating and sustainable food production.

The past few years has seen Britain undergo a health revolution. In 2019, a third of consumers said that they are eating more healthily than a year ago.

As people become more and more conscious of where their food comes from and the effect it has on the environment, as well as their own bodies, the number of vegetarians/vegans is soaring.

One in ten is aiming to become vegetarian within the next 12 months, and six per cent are going one step further – hoping to become fully vegan . 

We launched our healthy eating menu two seasons ago and it is now the fourth most popular of our catering options after Italian, English and American. Not bad for a venue steeped in football heritage of half-time pies, sausage rolls or hot dogs.

Another issue that customers are becoming more conscious of is sustainability in food production. That’s why the club now uses a minimum 80 per cent British seasonal fruit and veg, while none of the ingredients we use are imported by air. 

We have also committed to a 50 per cent reduction in red meat consumption by the end of 2020. 

Waste is another big issue in events catering and we have put in place a number of initiatives to ensure waste is limited.  Leftover oranges from the health club are turned into marmalade and bread crusts are made into croutons for salad. 

It’s clear that these trends will continue to influence both society and the options we provide our customers in the future.  Overall I expect to see our catering menus become even more diverse, with our operations focusing even more on responsible sourcing and waste reduction.