![Compass Group UK & Ireland Health & Wellbeing Strategy](/sites/default/files/styles/single_page/public/images/news/healthandwellbeing_website.jpg?itok=IeTsvQBM)
The pledges have been divided into three areas - Healthier Food, Healthier Lives and Healthier Futures - and will see Compass further reduce calories, fat and salt from its food and drive increased consumption of fruit and vegetables.
Dennis Hogan, managing director, said: “Health and wellbeing is now a prime consideration for our customers.
“The foodservice industry has a key role to play in providing access to more healthy options and helping educate people about the importance of maintaining a healthy, balanced diet.
“I believe our 2020 strategy outlines some bold pledges that put innovation at the heart of our health and wellbeing vision and will ensure we continue to lead and champion health and wellbeing in the foodservice sector for many years to come.”
Nicky Martin, head of nutrition, added: “Working through the pledges enables us to help address key public health issues and really focus on the issues causing health concerns for us as a population.
“As the UK’s largest foodservice provider we recognise that we have a responsibility and opportunity to help feed change and fight obesity and these pledges reflect our commitment in this area.
“I’m really excited about the benefits that the changes we introduce will have for our customers, for our organisation and the wider industry.”
The pledges will see Compass providing multi-channel access to health and wellbeing information and expanding on the education it provides to both adults and children through health MOTs and children’s education programmes.
The business will also look to establish its own foundation to help fund research in this area. Within these pledges, there are quantifiable commitments which will enable Compass to measure its progress including serving 2m extra portions of fruit and vegetables each year, cutting out added salt from recipes and removing 50m more calories from meals.
In an industry-leading move and in line with its pledge to provide customers with mutli-channel access to health and wellbeing information, Compass has teamed up with MyFitnessPal.
From October, thousands of recipes from across Compass’s sector businesses will now be searchable through the MyFitnessPal app – the largest free food database – providing an easier way for customers to keep an eye on what they eat.
The launch of this 2020 strategy follows the successful creation of the company’s Know Your Food platform – developed to educate and promote health, wellbeing and sustainable sourcing among customers – and Compass’s commitment to the Government’s Public Health Responsibility Deal.