Cutting Emissions While Feeding the Future: How AVE Rolled Out 400,000+ Low-Carbon School Meals
Added Value Enterprises (AVE) is a leading food procurement and consultancy firm helping caterers deliver healthier and more sustainable school meals across the UK. Working with more than 2,000 primary schools—around 8% of the national market—AVE plays a major role in shaping everyday food choices for the next generation.
In 2023, AVE partnered with Klimato to strengthen its service offering with CO₂ calculations, carbon labeling, reporting, and menu analysis. The goal was clear: turn complex climate data into practical guidance that chefs, procurement teams, and even pupils could understand.
Uses Klimato for
Carbon labeling, reporting, and menu development
CARBON REDUCTION
15 million kg CO₂e across school menus, 4.92% year-on-year reduction
Reduction Average
Each child’s footprint reduced by 30g per
day across 1,200+ schools
“Our clients submit their menus to us, and using Klimato, we run a multi-faceted analysis, looking at compliance, cost, nutrition, and sustainability. Klimato’s helped raise climate awareness for our clients. Its tools formulate clear targets and provide actionable data to support businesses in putting their best foot forward to maintain those positive outcomes.”
— Danielle Smith, Head of Food & Nutrition at AVE
The Challenge
Following the UK Government’s Sustainability & Climate Change Strategy for Education, schools and caterers faced new expectations around decarbonization. AVE needed a solution that could support these requirements while improving the value they deliver to clients.
They were looking for a platform that could:
• Deliver accurate, ingredient-level carbon data
• Scale across more than 1,200 schools
• Produce clear reports for stakeholders
• Support lower-carbon menu development without increasing costs or reducing appeal
AVE chose Klimato to help integrate sustainability into everyday menu planning.
THE SOLUTION
Klimato became a central data resource for AVE. Cost, nutrition, and carbon metrics are combined in one dashboard, saving time for both AVE and its clients.
While Klimato powers the analysis behind the scenes, AVE delivers:
• Seasonal menus
• Three-page carbon footprint reports
• A–E climate labels displayed next to each dish
This allows clients to act on insights without needing to manage complex climate tools themselves.
Data-driven decision making on ingredients
Klimato’s ingredient-level CO₂e calculations feed directly into AVE’s menu impact reports. Chefs receive clear recommendations that balance cost, nutrition, and emissions.
Common adjustments include:
• Reducing red meat
• Introducing alternative proteins
• Optimizing portion sizes
• Refining recipes to lower overall impact
These small changes scale quickly across thousands of meals.
Carbon labeling for menus and sales presentations
AVE uses climate labels across seasonal menus and sales presentations. Carbon data becomes a clear differentiator that supports contract wins and strengthens client conversations.
Klimato’s comparison features—such as road-mile CO₂ equivalents—also help schools present climate information in ways children can easily understand.
“We partnered with Klimato not out of industry pressure, but because it was the right choice for our clients. Its intuitive interface is incredibly easy to use, its three‑page reports slot perfectly into the way we build recipes and menus, and its reporting capabilities outshine other solutions we have encountered.”
— Ed Wright, Innovation & Growth Director at AVE
THE RESULT
Klimato’s data and reporting have helped AVE scale measurable climate progress across its school network. Key outcomes include:
• 15 million ton CO₂e reduced: Primary school menus now produce significantly lower emissions compared to previous baselines.
• 220,000 additional low-carbon menu options: The share of A- and B-rated meals increased, generating around 15 million low-emission meals each year.
• 30g daily reduction per child: Across a 38-week school year, these changes add up to meaningful impact at an individual level.
• Continuous decarbonization at scale: Even with business growth of 30% over three years, average dish emissions have dropped by 4.92% year-on-year.
Klimato makes it easier to reduce emissions from food and meet sustainability goals
With Klimato, AVE runs a scalable program that combines climate performance with operational efficiency. More than 50 million meals are now supported by structured carbon data, enabling better sourcing decisions, clearer reporting, and smarter menu design.
Klimato’s insights have also helped AVE strengthen its supplier code of conduct, raising standards across sourcing, packaging, and certifications while improving purchasing efficiency.
Klimato and AVE are now co-developing custom AI capabilities that embed carbon tracking directly into AVE’s systems, reducing manual work and supporting long-term automation.
Discover the Features AVE Uses To LEAD ON FOOD SUSTAINABILITY AND FIND YOUR FIT
See how carbon labeling, reporting, and menu analysis can support your food business.
