Sustainability
Building a sustainable supply chain for the future
The food industry in the UK accounts for about a third of all our carbon emissions. Not only does our food system pose the biggest risk to climate change, but it is also the most at risk from the effects of climate change: unpredictable weather patterns and natural disasters pose an existential threat to our ability to grow, care for and transport food.
We along with our suppliers, farms and producers are already seeing the impact of this, which is why we are dedicated to minimizing our environmental impact while trying to find new ways to support our all-important food system.
Anyone who knows us knows that we have long been champions of local sourcing and that regionality is baked into our business model. We carefully allocate sites individually to their local suppliers meaning that they are never more than 50 miles from their local United Fresh supply partner. Iin fact, we can do one better – across our entire client base, our average distance from your kitchen to the nominated depot is 29 miles!
Our model means that by working with us, our clients are even more embedded in their local communities by supporting the local economies and growers. This also significantly reduces food miles as food does not need to unnecessarily travel to and from multiple depots before ending up at your kitchen door. We are proud of this positive impact but know reducing food miles is only the start when it comes to pursuing a truly sustainable business.
As we move into new ways of working by sourcing multiple categories and working with an increasing level of suppliers, we take great care to enhance our approach to continue to deliver a quality offering, spearheaded by our values of sustainability. We pride ourselves on our family focused independent model, whilst still delivering a professional and sustainability centric approach.
Our sustainability journey is ongoing, we are proud of our achievements so far and are committed to being transparent and committed to making progress. But, like the rest of the food industry, we have work to do.
So let’s get started…
Building a Resilient and Ethical Supply Network
Transparency
Our operations have always been built on our relationships and the transparency and trust that comes from working closely with our suppliers. As our operations grow and the need for more a more visible approach to sustainability and our supply chain, we have chosen to professionalize our approach – that’s why 2024 saw the launch of our investment in the platform Sedex. Our partnership with Sedex will be a huge step in providing greater transparency across our supply chain in one seamless location.
Modern slavery
People are at the heart of what we do, which is why we take great care with those in our supply chain. We expect and monitor our supply partners to ensure they adhere to the strict standards regarding modern slavery and that our internal staff receive ongoing training on the important subject. Our team are trained to pick up on and report any possible sightings of modern slavery, so that when we visit anyone in our supply chain, we can be alert and aware of the signs.
Growers
Similarly, we work with some amazing growers, producers and farmers who are striving forward with regenerative agriculture, circular economy, and soil health. This includes following specific schemes set in place to only enhance the standards of care, sustainability and provenance of the farms. Farmers are the original stewards of our planet, and none cares more about the soil, plants and animals that they care for than them.
Supply partner innovation
Our supply partners are a creative, passionate and innovative bunch: from carbon positive depots, electric delivery vehicles, and reusable crate initiatives, to just name a few. They are constantly striving to provide sustainable solutions for their daily business operations.
Local sourcing
True to our roots we continue to champion local and seasonal products by connecting our clients with the best local suppliers in their region, reducing food miles and supporting local economies. Each of our depots carefully select the products they stock, and prioritize local farmers and producers.
Leading Responsible Business
Carbon measurement
We believe that what gets measured gets managed. We’ve therefore partnered with carbon measurement agency Positive Planet to measure and understand our impact from a carbon footprint point of view. After completing our base year 2022 emissions measurements we are now undergoing our measurement for 2023 and once complete will publish our carbon reduction plan and commit to targets aligned with Sbti.
Empowering our team
Our team receives regular training to ensure we stay educated on the issues most important to ourselves and our stakeholders. This includes modern slavery prevention training, carbon literacy, seasonality awareness and climate change awareness. However, this is an ever-expanding project, as sustainability is a journey with no defined end, we will continue to grow as a collective, learn from mistakes and share our learnings.
Driving industry Innovation and Education
Vegucation
A project we set up in 2022, to inspire the next generation by teaching them about seasonality, and where their food comes from, something that is often missing in early education. Our engaging sessions are tailored to each visit and offer an hands-on opportunity to learn about our food. In popularity, this expanded to not only the education sector, but also to our client base as a whole. We’ve held sessions with kitchen staff, in office headquarters, events and more. We believe that our food should never be taken for granted, and learning more about it is a great first step.
Expert advice
Every month we share with our clients and the industry a market report which highlights any shifts in seasonality, what products we recommend in peak season, context behind industry issues and fluctuations in price and availability and more. We have hundreds of years of knowledge in our supply chain, who all love to talk about the industry they are so passionate about. We hold regular tours around our producers’ farms and facilities, showing a behind the scenes of how the product comes to be, and the time and effort that goes into this.
Efficiency through innovation
Our network makes use of our streamlined on-demand ordering system creating sustainability efficiencies through route planning and minimizing food waste through frequent deliveries and partnerships with organization such as FareShare and the Felix Project.