What Does Sustainable Catering Actually Mean in 2026?
Pow Food has been named Best Sustainable Corporate & Event Catering Specialists – UK 2026 by LUXlife Magazine. But for us, the bigger question is what sustainable catering should actually look like today.
We’re very proud to share that Pow Food has been named Best Sustainable Corporate & Event Catering Specialists – UK 2026 by LUXlife Magazine.
Awards are always lovely to receive, particularly when they recognise something that has been fundamental to Pow Food from the beginning. But sustainability is also a word used so often in food and hospitality that it can be difficult to know what it really means in practice.
For us, sustainable catering has never been about one metric, ingredient or initiative. It means looking at the whole food system: how ingredients are grown, where they come from, what we put on the plate, what gets wasted, the communities our business impacts and, importantly, how the food we serve supports human health.
So, what does that look like at Pow Food?
Starting With How Our Food Is Grown
More than 75% of the ingredients we use daily are organic.
Why does that matter? Because the conversation around sustainable food needs to start long before ingredients arrive in our kitchen.
How food is grown affects our soils, biodiversity, ecosystems and the people producing and eating it. We’re increasingly interested in the connection between soil health, food quality, human health and planetary health, and in how catering businesses can use their purchasing power to support a healthier food system.
We also recognise that organic food isn't always accessible or affordable for everyone. That's why we believe education and transparency need to sit alongside sourcing, helping people better understand where their food comes from and make informed choices where they can.
Putting More Plants on the Plate
Our menus are designed to be plant-forward, increasing the role of vegetables, pulses, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds without necessarily removing animal proteins altogether.
It's about changing the balance of the plate.
We want plant-forward food to be genuinely delicious and satisfying, rather than the vegetarian option feeling like an afterthought.
And because our menus are nutritionist-designed as well as chef-made, we consider the nutritional value of those choices alongside their environmental impact.
Looking Beyond Carbon
Carbon matters, and we measure the impact of our food to help inform better decisions around menus and sourcing.
But we don't think sustainability can be reduced to a carbon number alone.
Food waste matters too. Pow Food works to reduce waste throughout menu planning and production, with food waste diverted from landfill through ReFood, where it is used for anaerobic digestion.
Packaging, sourcing, seasonality and the wider impact of the supply chain all form part of the picture.
There isn't one intervention that suddenly makes a catering business sustainable. It's the result of hundreds of decisions made every day.
Human Health Is Part of Sustainability Too
This is an area we believe needs much more attention.
We can't talk about creating a healthier planet without considering whether the food system is also creating healthier people.
In March 2026, Pow Food became the first catering company globally to achieve the Works with WELL designation, recognising the alignment of our approach with WELL strategies.
For us, it reinforces something we've believed for a long time: workplace food shouldn't simply fill a gap between morning meetings and the afternoon.
What people eat at work can be part of a much wider conversation around nutrition, energy, wellbeing and the everyday employee experience.
Sustainable workplace catering therefore needs to ask two questions at the same time:
What impact does this food have on the planet? And what impact does it have on the person eating it?
Using Food to Support Communities
Responsible business also extends beyond our kitchens and clients.
Through our Meal for a Meal initiative with City Harvest London, we support efforts to get food to people experiencing food insecurity across London.
We also work with The Marylebone Project, supporting its work with women experiencing homelessness.
For us, these relationships are another important part of considering the wider impact a food business can have on the communities around it.
Taking the Conversation to Blue Earth
In 2025, Pow Food became the Official Catering Partner of Blue Earth Forum, catering for more than 4,000 attendees.
More than 80% of ingredients were UK-sourced, zero single-use plastic was used across the catering operation, and 73% of surveyed attendees reported improved focus after lunch.
We're returning as an Official Catering Partner of Blue Earth in 2026, but our involvement this year goes beyond what we're putting on the plate.
We're using the partnership to continue conversations around human and planetary health, organic food, soil health, regenerative agriculture, responsible procurement and the role businesses can play in creating a healthier food system.
There Is Always More Work to Do
Being named Best Sustainable Corporate & Event Catering Specialists – UK 2026 means a great deal to us, but we don't see sustainability as something a business ever completes.
There will always be more to question, measure and improve.
For us, the goal is to keep showing our working: being transparent about what we're doing now, where we want to do better, and continuing to push for a food system that supports the health of people and the planet.