“ Particularly when we ’ re feeding 90,000 people at Royal Ascot . If you ’ re going to do it , we have to know where it comes from .”
The question is not just around what food goes on the menu – but where the produce originates from . Morgan spoke about one supplier , saying : “ We use a company called Waste Knot vegetables who supply us with a surplus that is not good enough to go into the supply chain for Sainsbury ’ s or Tesco .
“ But from my perspective , there ’ s absolutely nothing wrong with vegetables . In fact , you get some absolutely humongous cabbages . So , if you get your delivery on the right week , you benefit from it .”
Covering costs One of the main sticking points for sustainability is cost , especially in events . With many conferences running on such tight margins and many sustainable solutions coming with some kind of monetary increase , how do events businesses square away the increase in price ?
Dutson , who manages much of the food and beverage ( F & B ) at Royal Ascot , said these tight margins are not exclusive to smaller events – that even the 90,000-person attendance at races was operated on fine profits . He said : “ it ’ s not like we ’ re making millions out of selling somebody a burger or a three-course meal , it is tight .
“ So yes , there is a cost implication , you must find a balance . Eventually some of these things [ sustainable options ] will have to come down in price because they will become the norm .”
This flattening of the price curve cannot come soon enough for Dutson , who singled out plant-based protein as having a high price point because it ’ s very on-trend now , but eventually it ’ s going to become normality . He concluded by saying : “ My biggest hope is that it ’ s not too late , because we are pushing close to that that point of no return .” On the other hand , Morgan put much of the price increases to other factors , like altered supply lines due to Brexit , with basics like rapeseed oil more difficult to get a hold of . He said : “ Customers need to hear and see www . conference-news . co . uk