The 2025 waste2zero awards that recognise excellence in Waste Management and Prevention in the out of home food and drink sector, were presented at an exclusive dinner held at the famous In & Out in London’s St.James’s Square tonight.
This is now the ninth year of this event which was launched back in 2017, in association with Bunzl Catering Supplies, to highlight the initiatives taken by businesses in the hospitality and foodservice arena to counter the scourge of endemic waste in the industry.
As we all know, the out of home food and drink sector provides huge opportunities for waste at all stages of supply and value chains. Areas such as food, energy, packaging, logistics and others all have contributions to make and processes, systems and technologies are designed as counter-measures.
Industry waste of course equates to lost profit and so has to be a key focus for any business, particularly one such as foodservice where margins can be notoriously thin. But it persists. Food waste carries the emotional focus, particularly in a world where food security is such a major issue, whereas non-food waste produces the negative environmental impacts we all know about.
But the good news is that the industry is tackling this head on and the entries to waste2zero in 2025 are clear evidence of this with a mantra of reduce, redistribute and recycle. The entries this year have been as inspiring as they are innovative and are a great credit to the organisations concerned.
An elite panel of judges, experts in waste, packaging and sustainability, reviewed innovations and initiatives from organisations large and small in areas such as resource management, closed loop, recycling and food redistribution. Clear leadership is evident from some organisations in the sector who are demonstrating operational strategies that reduce waste impacts to the environment up and down supply chains.
The 2025 Winners and Highly Commended entries in their chosen categories are as follows.
Best Recycling or Upcycling Project Award
Sponsored by CIWM
Winner: Aggora
Highly Commended: Grupo Avinea
Best Waste Prevention Project Award (non-food)
Sponsored by Bunzl Catering Supplies
Winner: Notpla
Highly Commended: ESS
Best Food Waste Prevention Project Award
Sponsored by Nestlé Professional
Winner: Sodexo UK & Ireland
Highly Commended: Fooditude
Best Waste Project Communication & Stakeholder Engagement Award
Sponsored by Compass Group UK & I
Winner: Subway
Highly Commended: Zest Recycle
Food Redistribution Award
Presented by Valpak
Winner: FareShare
Highly Commended: Harper Adams University
Best Closed Loop Project Award
Sponsored by Sodexo UK & Ireland
Winner: Southern Water
Highly Commended: Sysco with Reconomy Connect
Best Resource Management Business of the Year
Presented by Reconomy Connect
Winner: Sodexo UK & Ireland
Highly Commended: Aramark UK
