Nourishing a net zero future: SSP Group and Klimato's recipe for transparent, low-carbon dining
Multinational foodservice company SSP Group is a leading food and beverage operator serving travelers principally in airports and railway stations. With a diverse portfolio of own and franchise brands, SSP offers a wide range of high-quality dining options to travelers in nearly 40 countries around the world.
CLIENT
SSP Group
LOCATION
UK, Ireland, and UAE
Industry
Foodservice
Uses Klimato for
Carbon measurement and reduction, menu development, and carbon labelling
“At SSP UK & Ireland (UK&I), we are rapidly embedding sustainability into our everyday
decision-making. Our partnership with Klimato has been a key enabler of this on our
journey to reduce food-related GHG emissions. Our Culinary and Commercial teams
are now using their ingredient-level environmental insights to evolve our offer – reducing
the footprint of our menus, while maintaining the customer experience and profitability.”
— Meredith Ford, UK&I Head of Sustainability
The Challenge
SSP has science-based targets to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across its value chain by 2040. With nearly 90% of SSP’s 2019 global carbon footprint relating to Scope 3 emissions in its value chain, cutting these carbon emissions is no simple feat.
That’s why, in 2023, SSP began its partnership with Klimato to measure the current impact of its menus and explore lower impact recipe alternatives that maintain both customer appeal and profitability. SSP also set out to explore the impact of Klimato carbon labelling, enabling consumers to see the carbon impact of the food to make informed choices.
THE SOLUTION
Carbon footprint assessments and recipe evolution
SSP began piloting the Klimato platform in its UK and UAE markets in 2023, using the platform to calculate the carbon footprint of its recipes, including absolute CO2e emissions and intensity rating (A-E).
The platform empowers SSP’s culinary teams to evaluate the carbon impact of its recipes with granular insights into the environmental impact of each ingredient, including CO2e emissions, water use, nutrient pollution and land use. By combining SSP’s wealth of culinary expertise with Klimato’s extensive ingredient-level data, culinary teams are better equipped to create climate-conscious, lower-impact menu alternatives.
Carbon labeling
Klimato’s data has enabled SSP to experiment with labeling menu items with their carbon footprint, helping customers understand the impact of each dish to make informed, sustainable choices.
“As we expand our Eastern Europe & the Middle East (EEME) and Asia Pacific (APAC)
business, we are conscious of the need to grow sustainably. The food we serve is core
to what we do, and we’re embedding sustainability from the ground up – working to
ensure that everyone, from those preparing the food to those enjoying it, better
understand its impact. Klimato’s carbon labeling in the UAE was one of the key
initiatives in driving this message, making the carbon footprint of our menus clear and
actionable. This effort not only was a first in a travel location but also earned us industry
recognition, winning the Moodie Davitt Food & Beverage Award for Sustainability
Initiative of the Year 2024”.
— Shruti Ahuja, Head of Sustainability (APAC & EEME) and Safety (EEME)
THE RESULT
Following the pilots in the UK and UAE, SSP expanded its implementation of Klimato in 2024.
In the UAE, all recipes for SSP’s Camden Food Co and Ritazza brands are now
assessed using Klimato, with its culinary teams having integrated these assessments into their menu development processes. They have plans to expand to more of their own brands in 2025.
In the UK and Ireland, SSP UK&I analyzed over 1,300 own brand recipes, and
integrated the data into their commercial dashboard, enabling them to track carbon ratings alongside other product KPIs. Klimato assessments are now a core part of new product and menu development and are already having an impact. For example, the autumn 2024 menu refresh for SSP UK&I’s casual dining bars offered a c.20% lower CO2e impact on average compared to the previous menu offer and featured c.39% low- or very-low-carbon* dishes.
Furthermore, in the UK and UAE, SSP is implementing Klimato’s carbon labeling to better understand how customers respond.
During the three-month trial in the UAE for Camden Food Co and Ritazza, 60% of sales were from low-carbon-rated dishes. Additionally, 65% of surveyed customers expressed a high likelihood of choosing carbon-labelled dishes in the future.
In the UK, SSP introduced Klimato labels to five Soul + Grain units, supported by in-store communications materials, to help customers make informed choices. 88% of Soul + Grain customers surveyed appreciated the transparency the labeling represents, with 83% indicating they would use this information in making their product choice.
Alongside carbon labeling, SSP is also exploring new methods to encourage climate-smart choices for consumers, including upgraded menu designs and descriptors.
*As defined by the Klimato scale, meaning less than 0.9kg CO2e per 400g serving.
Klimato makes it easier to reduce emissions from food and meet sustainability
goals
Leveraging Klimato insights, SSP has begun assessing the carbon impact of its recipes, menus and sales. They are now applying these insights to create delicious lower-carbon choices that maintain profitability.
SSP is currently rebaselining its global carbon footprint to account for new acquisitions and land-based emissions* reductions and removals. These refinements will provide even greater visibility of reductions from its efforts using Klimato insights and paint a clearer picture of its ongoing progress.
*In accordance with Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi)’s new Forest, Land and Agriculture (FLAG) sector standard.
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