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- Bristol Eating Better Award
Why a thriving local economy is important, how to support Bristol's economy.
Objective 11 of the Bristol Eating Better Award outlines 4 actions you can do to support the local economy.
For more detailed guidance about the actions see the pdf guidance document (904 KB) .
Why a thriving local economy is important
Bristol benefits from a huge range of local producers, as well as a wealth of academic and vocational education and training providers.
When our local economy thrives, it:
- creates jobs for local people
- creates secure and sustainable livelihoods
- supports lots of local businesses
For food this includes producers, growers, farmers, manufacturers, wholesalers, shops, cafes and restaurants. They all trade and depend on each other. This process keeps money circulating within the city and develops a skills and knowledge exchange. It also contributes to the regeneration of our high streets and city centres, stimulating food tourism and improving the cultural offer of an area.
Research by Northumberland County Council Go to https://www.lm3online.com/about (opens new window) has shown that every £1 spent with a local supplier is worth £1.76 to the local economy, and only 36 pence if it is spent outside of the local area. That makes £1 spent locally worth almost 400% more to the local economy.
Bristol's ‘Where's It To?' project aims to celebrate local high streets, supporting independent businesses with their economic recovery following the pandemic. Find out more about the Where's It To project Go to https://www.wheresittobristol.com/about (opens new window).
The Real Living Wage
Paying employees a Real Living Wage Go to https://www.livingwage.org.uk/what-real-living-wage (opens new window) means they're:
- better paid and able to better withstand rising living costs
- likely to be more committed to your business
- more likely to stay working locally, keeping skills circulating in the local area
Hints and tips to support the local economy
- Display information to your customers about where the food you serve comes from so they can make informed choices.
- Source ingredients and products from local suppliers as much as possible.
- Champion local producers and UK suppliers to celebrate and promote the work they are doing and the service they provide.
- Employ people that live in the BS1 – BS16 postcode areas.
- Pay your employees the Real Living Wage.
Page last reviewed: 5 October 2022
How the food industry contributes to carbon emissions, why the increase in carbon emissions is a problem and how to reduce your business's carbon emissions.
Objective 9 of the Bristol Eating Better Award outlines 6 actions you can take to reduce carbon and help address the climate emergency.
For more detailed guidance about the actions see the pdf guidance document (904 KB) .
How the food industry contributes to carbon emissions and why they're a problem
Human activity is contributing to an increase in carbon emissions. Burning fossil fuels like oil, gas and coal releases carbon directly into the atmosphere. Deforestation also increases carbon emissions because trees act as a natural carbon sink and absorb carbon dioxide, so cutting down trees reduces this natural storage. This increased carbon in the atmosphere is causing climate change Go to https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24021772 (opens new window).
In 2018 Bristol declared a climate emergency in response to the effects of climate change on human life, wildlife and the planet we inhabit. You can read more about the action being taken in Bristol to address the climate emergency on the Bristol One City website Go to https://www.bristolonecity.com/climate/ (opens new window).
The food system is a major contributor to climate change through agriculture, transportation and food waste. Land is cleared for livestock production to create grazing land and to grow animal feed. Many agricultural systems are intensive, using lots of energy during production, such as heated greenhouses. Food is then often transported many miles from where it's grown or produced, especially in order to meet demand for produce that is out of season in the UK.
The UK's National Food Strategy recommends that by 2032 the national diet requires a 30% increase in fruit and vegetable consumption and a 30% reduction in meat consumption Go to https://www.nationalfoodstrategy.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/National-Food-Strategy-Chapter-16.pdf (opens new window) to meet our health, climate and nature commitments. The EAT-Lancet Commission have developed the planetary health diet Go to https://eatforum.org/eat-lancet-commission/the-planetary-health-diet-and-you/ (opens new window) which is an optimal diet for human health and environmental sustainability. This emphasises a plant-rich diet where whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes comprise a greater proportion of foods consumed. Meat and dairy still constitute important parts of the diet but in significantly smaller proportions than plants.
Hints and tips to reduce carbon
- Try a ‘more veg, better meat' approach: incorporate more plant-based ingredients in the food you serve. If you do serve meat, use less of it and buy better quality, responsibly sourced meat.
- Buy UK seasonal produce as much as possible. This uses less energy and is unlikely to have travelled as many miles as food produced overseas.
- Switch to more sustainable transport options for your business such as using a bike delivery service, or freight consolidation to minimise deliveries.
- Make energy efficiency improvements to your premises if you own your site or encourage your landlord to do so if you rent, for example switching to energy efficient lightbulbs, fitting double glazing or installing draft proofing.
- Develop a carbon reduction plan and help Bristol become carbon neutral by 2030.
- Tell your customers about the changes you're making.
Page last reviewed: 5 October 2022
The Bristol Eating Better Award (BEBA) aims to develop a business community with a culture of supporting food businesses, sharing information and influencing the development of BEBA.
Facebook and Instagram
Bristol Eating Better Award (BEBA) has Facebook Go to https://en-gb.facebook.com/BristolEatingBetter/ (opens new window) and Instagram Go to https://www.instagram.com/bristoleatingbetter/?hl=en (opens new window) pages.
As a Bristol Eating Better Award holder, we encourage you to get involved by:
- tagging Bristol Eating Better Award using #BEBA when promoting healthy and sustainable food
- posting the actions you're taking to meet BEBA standards
- posting about the benefits to customers of the actions you've taken
- filling in the case study template so that we can promote you on our social media channels
- encouraging other businesses to apply for the BEBA
Business networking
We've had interest from Bristol businesses to create a network for sharing hints and tips, such as local suppliers and ideas for BEBA actions. If you'd like to get involved in a business network, email bristoleatingbetter@bristol.gov.uk and we'll put you in touch with likeminded businesses.
Bristol Eating Better Award steering group
We hold quarterly steering group meetings to support the development of the award. The steering group aims to:
- develop the Bristol Eating Better Award (BEBA)
- represent a range of key partners and workstreams
- seek new opportunities to expand BEBA
- promote the awards wherever possible to increase awareness
- evaluate the award's success
We're looking for food businesses to be members of the steering group. The minimum time commitment is attendance at quarterly steering group meetings, which last approximately 1 hour. You may need to spend more time if you get involved in BEBA projects, which are agreed at the steering group meetings.
If you're interested in joining the steering group, e-mail bristoleatingbetter@bristol.gov.uk
The Bristol Eating Better Business Award is a free award for food businesses that make and sell food directly to customers. For example:
- restaurants
- takeaways
- cafes and coffee shops
- mobile food vans
- market stall holders
You must:
- be registered as a food business with us, or
- be registered outside of Bristol but trade in Bristol, for example as a market trader
- have a Food Hygiene Rating of 4 or 5
The award is made up of 12 objectives, crossing 3 themes.
- Healthier eating: taking action to provide more healthy food.
- Sustainability: taking action to make your food offering more sustainable.
- Sustainability and community: taking action to support the local economy, communicating, training and working with others.
When you fill out an application form, each objective has a set of actions you could take to show your commitment to providing healthier options and being more sustainable. Some actions are described as 'core actions'. Core actions are the actions all businesses should be taking to achieve an award. For example:
- providing free drinking water
- making fruit and vegetables part of every meal
There are also a range of additional actions for each objective. Check award levels for how many actions you need to complete to achieve each level. For these actions, you might need to think more about how you prepare food and the products you buy. For example, buy:
- fish that is sustainably caught or responsibly farmed
- products that use sustainable packaging
Use our pdf Bristol Eating Better Business Award core action checklist (121 KB) to make sure you're doing all the core actions (where applicable to your business) and if you're eligible for an award.
The more actions you commit to, the higher level of award you can achieve. There are 3 award levels:
Bronze award
To achieve the bronze award, you need to:
- do the 27 core actions
- commit to another 8 actions of your choice
In total, you need to commit to 35 actions.
Silver award
To achieve the silver award, you need to:
- do the 27 core actions
- commit to another 22 actions of your choice, this needs to include at least 5 actions from the healthier eating objectives (objectives 1-6) and at least 5 actions from the sustainability and sustainability and community objectives (objectives 7-12)
In total, you need to commit to 49 actions.
Gold award
To achieve the gold award, you need to:
- do the 27 core actions
- commit to another 36 actions of your choice, this needs to include at least 10 actions from the healthier eating objectives (objectives 1-6) and at least 10 actions from the sustainability and sustainability and community objectives (objectives 7-12)
In total, you need to commit to 63 actions.
Before you apply
- Your award is valid for two years.
- We'll ask you to re-apply when it runs out.
- We conduct annual auditing where we visit randomly selected businesses to discuss the actions you're taking and review your food offering.
The application process relies on your honesty. You'll need to:
- know about the working practices of your kitchen, for example what ingredients and cooking methods you use
- have permission from the owner of the business to make any agreed changes
- know an estimate of how many customers you serve in a day
Apply now
Apply for the Bristol Eating Better Business Award
See our pdf pdf printable example form (1.27 MB) to help you plan your application.
If your business has more than one site, apply using the spreadsheet multiple site application form (31 KB) . Email your form to bristoleatingbetter@bristol.gov.uk
We look forward to hearing about the actions you take.
Email us at bristoleatingbetter@bristol.gov.uk for a copy of your previous application if you need it, or if you need any support with your application.
We have further information about each of the Bristol Eating Better Award objectives:
- in our pdf Guidance document (904 KB)
- on Business Award objectives
- pdf supplementary guidance for adult social care settings (145 KB)
The information has:
- hints and tips about how to apply the objective in a food business
- nutritional information and evidence to support each of the objectives
You can use this information when you're filling in the application form, or as a guide to improving your products.
We aim to assess your application within 3 weeks and may contact you for more information. If you're successful, we'll send you an award pack with:
- a window sticker for your business
- a Bristol Eating Better Award logo to use on your website or elsewhere
- a hard copy of your certificate with what you're doing or are going to do to make your food healthier and more sustainable
- a PDF of your certificate
- the terms and conditions of the award
We'll also:
- add your business to the Awarded businesses page on this website
- promote your business on our social media channels
- promote your business to event organisers if you cater for this market
Communicate with customers, train your staff on healthy and sustainable food, work with your local community.
Objective 12 of the Bristol Eating Better Award outlines 4 actions you can do around communicating, training and working with others.
For more detailed guidance about the actions see the pdf guidance document (904 KB) .
Talk to your customers
Good communication is key to a successful business. It benefits your relationships with your customers, leaving them with a positive feeling about your company. Letting your customers know that you understand the importance of meeting their needs and are willing to do what it takes to keep them happy is a good way of building customer loyalty.
You can:
- get feedback from your customers about your menu, either through customer feedback surveys, or by asking them
- use customer feedback to improve your menu and make sure your food meets customer demand
Train your staff
Teaching your staff about healthy and sustainable food means they can apply this knowledge to their work and strengthen your reputation as a business that cares about health and sustainability. Training your employees can have benefits such as:
- better productivity
- shared company knowledge
- more efficient business processes
- better staff induction
- improving staff loyalty and reduction in staff turnover
You can:
- train staff on heathier cooking methods as part of their induction process
- encourage staff to do relevant external courses, such as those provided by the Association for Nutrition Training Go to https://www.associationfornutrition.org/careers-nutrition/wider-workforce/wider-workforce-certification (opens new window)
- encourage staff to learn about food sustainability, such as by watching these films Go to https://www.goingforgoldbristol.co.uk/films/ (opens new window) produced when Bristol achieved Gold Sustainable Food City status
Work with your local community
Supporting a shift towards healthier and more sustainable food requires greater public awareness of food system issues and widespread participation in food-related activity, by both individuals and organisations. This could include food growing projects, food waste recycling and composting, shopping locally and cooking from scratch.
You can:
- find out what community initiatives are active in your local area and what support they need
- invite local people to events at your business and promote the role, importance and joy of good food
- raise public awareness of healthy food and sustainable issues through your different communication channels
- serve food at local events to raise awareness of food initiatives championed by your business to attract customers
Page last reviewed: 4 October 2022
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