A visit to MEI’s UK Event Summit
Highlights for me included the panel discussions on The Future of Live Events, with a panel of industry experts
Eat to the Beat , the artist, production & crew catering division of Global Infusion Group, is proud to be forging ahead with its eco-friendly approach to event catering as it returns to Glastonbury Festival for the 19th year to provide the backstage catering for artists, crews and support teams.
Eat to the Beat, who are the UK’s leading entertainment industry caterer, will support four main areas, including Pyramid crew and BBC, Pyramid artists, Other Stage and Aggreko – providing fresh, delicious, local food throughout the four-day festival which starts today.
Eat to the Beat are delighted to be able to support the eco-friendly ethos of Glastonbury, which matches its own established commitment to reducing environmental impact. The company already use recyclable and biodegradable disposable serviceware, discourages water wastage and ensures local provenance to help the local community suppliers and reduce the carbon footprint from traffic where possible.
“We are committed to reducing our footprint wherever possible,” says Eat to the Beat’s Global Operations Director Mary Shelley-Smith. “We not only use locally sourced products, but use the on-site wholesale market for fruit, veg, dairy and so on.
“We are very proud to have achieved the internationally recognised standard for the environmental management of business (ISO 14001), which has been awarded to only 1% of UK businesses, as well as ISO 9001, which assesses the quality management systems in place within the business.”
As part of Global Infusion Group, Eat to the Beat run a number of environmentally-friendly schemes including a car share initiative and the use of eco-friendly chemical products.
Mary says: “It is in our interests socially, environmentally and fiscally to reduce our impact because more often than not, positive environmental management practices actually reduce the cost of certain operational strategies. For example, the use of recyclable disposables reduces our staffing and waste water costs. It absolutely makes sense.”
Eat to the Beat always try to buy produce with minimal packaging and work with suppliers to reduce packaging even further where possible.
Mary and her team are responsible for keeping crews and artists fed and refreshed throughout the festival, during the build-up phase and while the site is cleared.
The world-famous festival, at Pilton, Somerset, has welcomed some of the music industry’s biggest names since it launched in 1970, when tickets cost just £1 and included free milk from its Worthy Farm hosts. The festival has long held a ‘green’ and sustainable ethos, with more than £250,000 being raised for Greenpeace, Oxfam and many local charities in 1993. In 2004, ‘Working together for a green Glastonbury’ paid off, with 32% of all waste from the event being recycled, including 110 tons of organic waste composted. Glastonbury Festival is often at the forefront of alternative environmental solutions and aims to give people the chance to ‘open their eyes’ to see something better, even if it is just for one weekend in a year.