Thje O2 hosted Billie Eilish ’ s climate-focused Overheated tour
certification , which involves a full audit of the venue team ’ s sustainability practices .
Says Sayer , “ We expect to get that certification through towards the end of the summer . The review covers all aspects of the business ; carbon emissions , waste and recycling , systems processes , and delves into our D & I initiatives – it ’ s a broad spectrum .”
The O2 is also working with AGF to establish a scientific baseline for scope 1 , 2 and 3 emissions before publishing a plan to reach Net Zero .
Says Langford , “ That is groundbreaking in that most venues and most businesses tend to only look at scope 1 and 2 , which are their own impacts and not the thirdparty impacts of everybody from customers travelling to the venue to your suppliers .
“ The report , to be published this year , will show our scope 1 , 2 and 3 emissions . I believe the most impactful thing that we do over the next 10 years when it comes
During Billie Eilish ’ s shows only vegan food was available
to sustainability is figuring out our scope 3 emissions and reducing that impact as much as we can .”
Having switched to a vegan-only food offering during Billie Eilish ’ s six shows at the venue in June , The O2 asked its catering partner Levy to permanently remove beef burgers from menus .
A few months ago , Levy extended its contract with The O2 until 2030 . It ’ s a partnership that Langford says involves a mutual commitment to making significant reductions to their environmental footprint . Levy has committed to reaching Net Zero on its F & B work at The O2 by 2025 .
Levy UK & Ireland MD Jonathan Davies says the move to a vegan only offering during the Eilish shows was well received : “ Food and drink has a big impact on the carbon footprint at The O2 . We have been working closely with the team for some time and had already done a lot of work in the background but hadn ’ t planned doing fully vegan menus . Billie ’ s fanbase are engaged with the issues and the response was fantastic , food sales were up on an average show basis .”
Among the other actions being taken is a move to 100 % seasonal sourcing for all menus by the end of 2022 .
“ We are asking chefs to be more creative and understanding of the seasons ,” says Davies . “ We don ’ t want air freighted fruit and veg in our business so we have to work harder to use the produce that is available . Seasonal food tastes better , it costs less and supports local communities .”
Levy is working with Klimato to calculate , communicate and report the climate impact of the food available for fans to purchase at The O2 , with the aim of helping them to make sustainable choices . The partnership will see all
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