If anyone wants proof that climate change is real, they need look no further than recent UK weather events.  From one extreme to the other – sunshine and sandals to driving wind and snow!

We all have a responsibility to care for our planet, and the foodservice industry isn’t exempt.  The total amount of waste, including food, packaging and other ‘non-food’ waste produced each year by hospitality and food service sector (HaFS) outlets is 2.87 million tonnes.  Of this, 920,000 tonnes of food is wasted at outlets annually – 75% of which is avoidable – costing the sector £2.5 billion per year (source: WRAP).

Progress is being made by the sector, according to a new report by the Sustainable Restaurant, in terms of tackling sustainability issues, but the pace of change is nowhere near fast or widespread enough. The facts are that if the foodservice industry reduced food waste by one quarter, it could cut its carbon emissions by almost one million tonnes a year.

That may sound like a tall order, but an obvious way that everyone can contribute is by avoiding waste in the first place.  By simply doing what you should be doing for the good of your margin – running a tight ship and getting your stock and order processes right – you will help the planet.  It doesn’t require huge investment or change, it just requires a little extra focus and effort on many of the systems and processes you already have.

It may not be new, but the difference that can be made by making small incremental improvements in your stock & order process can be exciting.  Sustainability benefits can be achieved in terms of reducing packaging, food waste and CO₂ omissions, to name just a few.  And when combined, these incremental savings stack up to not only make a significant contribution to the bottom line, but also to the corporate and social responsibility (CSR) objectives your customers increasingly expect of you.

A key fundamental to becoming a sustainable business, is having access to real time data on purchase volumes and stock levels, together with the ability to control the purchasing of every outlet.  For example, if you can design a menu that considers the carbon footprint of its products, coupled with minimising the risk of waste through stock control, kitchen management and portion sizes, then you will be doing your bit for the planet.

If we look at animal agriculture, it contributes to about 14.5% of the world’s greenhouse gases, of which 65% comes from beef and dairy cattle, giving it a hefty carbon footprint. Cows also produce methane gas which is a harmful greenhouse gas. In many countries, deforestation to clear land for cattle is also contributing to climate change.  By reducing the number of beef options on the menu and sourcing responsibly, you can help achieve the cumulative gains required to make a big difference.

There are also ‘throw-away’ ingredients such as tinned tomatoes and baked beans, that are low value and may be considered okay to waste.  However, by being more careful you could significantly reduce packaging waste and do your bit for the planet, be that by avoiding landfill or incineration.

Taking control of your stock and order processes not only means you will be contributing to your environmental goals; but you’ll be adding to your bottom line through marginal gains.  When consistently implemented, we have seen improvements on margins ranging from anything between 3 to 8%.

Being both environmentally and financially savvy is something we all need to grapple with, but it’s not rocket science.  Knowing that the ‘boring stuff’ – comprehensive systems, underpinned by solid process, delivering accurate, timely information, that is constantly reviewed and regarded – is the foundation for success.

Operators owe it to themselves to get these fundamentals right, but there is a far greater environmental goal which they must also play a part in delivering. It’s a whole new way of thinking about the importance of getting often regarded difficult and dull processes in place – a way which should inspire and engage everyone – from the board room to the back office, the big budget party organiser to the Friday night regulars.

We need to open our eyes and have a detailed picture of all our operations in order to manage costs effectively from utilities to ingredients to people.  Never has it been easier to paint this picture through integrated technology, so that data can be aggregated quickly to create real-time data analysis and comprehensive reporting in an easy to understand format.

In our brave new world, it’s about having the right level of detail to make sure sustainability counts.

BluJay Solutions, a leading provider of supply chain software and services powered by the world’s first Global Trade Network, today announced that Zonal, has deployed BluJay’s MessageBroker platform. The solution will offer Zonal customers access to over 40,000 suppliers for its purchasing management system, Acquire.

BluJay’s MessageBroker platform helps unlock Acquire’s full potential as a real-time, order-to-pay tool for Zonal’s customers and their suppliers, by providing a fully integrated and automated communications service.

Zonal’s Director of Online Commerce, Helen McMillan, said:

“BluJay impressed us with their extensive list of suppliers and the flexibility to integrate seamlessly with our Acquire platform, ultimately delivering cost reductions and an even better service for our customers.

“With the implementation of MessageBroker, we will quickly and easily provide more customers with an enriched and wider range of Acquire’s features, such as a real-time, more accurate view of order status and vastly improved invoice matching.

“As BluJay fully supports the onboarding of new suppliers to the platform, we have also freed up specialist technical resources within Zonal to focus on delivering more industry-leading innovations more quickly.”

Zonal was looking for a partner with experience in its field, who it could trust to provide an affordable, tailored solution with a focus on excellent service, and BluJay stood out from the crowd.

Enhanced integrations across the supply chain are already yielding a reduction in errors across customer operations. Improving these collaborations will also empower Zonal customers to develop strategic and operational action plans to effect cost efficiencies and enhanced customer service.

“BluJay is proud to partner with Zonal to improve integration across customer supply chains,” Sian Hopwood, SVP B2B Operations at BluJay.

“We know that consumer expectations in hospitality are increasingly high. The complexity of the technologies needed to achieve customer satisfaction and the pressure for hospitality firms to increase efficiency are also growing. The integration and automation of MessageBroker will help Zonal achieve its goals in the face of this double challenge.”

It’s revealed that the hospitality industry wastes 1 million tonnes of food per year, but are businesses A) aware and B) educated on how and what can be done to decrease this?

Without an efficient system in place to provide visibility to all areas of the business it can be hard for a fast-paced restaurant or pub to monitor how much waste they are generating on a month by month basis. As the saying goes, ‘if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it’, but not only is this an extraordinary waste of food, it’s also acting as a slow puncture in company profit margins.

With a sophisticated stock management solution tailored to fit the requirements of your business you can say goodbye to unexplained food waste and stock count estimations. Zonal’s Aztec solution can streamline the entire process, providing tighter controls and real time reports on stock holding, usage, portion size and recipe ingredients across multiple venues.

The intuitive nature of a stock management system enables suggested orders to be made based on your current stock count and average performance of individual orders. Real time reporting also provides low stock alerts to ensure you never disappoint your customer by running out of their favourite sticky toffee pudding.

So invest in a stock management system today and quickly see the measurable improvements in speed, control and efficiency whilst making valuable savings for your business. Zonal is the UK’s No1 hospitality business solutions provider, offering you a tool for each step of the customer journey. Contact us today and find out how we can help you.

Anglian Country Inns is seeing a return on its investment with Zonal Retail Data Systems, since introducing EPoS into its six pubs 2.5 years ago.

Featuring a range of award winning pubs, from high end gastro to family friendly and high street venues in Norfolk and Hertfordshire, Anglian relies on its Aztec EPoS system to give clear, real-time visibility of its business.

Managing director James Nye said: “Despite being a small operator, we have an eclectic mix of pubs, with food at the heart of each business.  Despite these challenges, Zonal has worked with us to introduce an EPoS system that has the flexibility to work across each site.   We are already reaping the financial rewards of our investment with 2% increase on wet margin, tighter stock controls and costings and improved staff scheduling.”

The Aztec system sits as the centre of the business, from which Anglian is building an integrated single management system.  To date, the company uses Zonal’s back office systems such as purchasing and time and attendance.

Zonal’s Purchase to Pay solution, Acquire  gives multi-site businesses such as Anglian, tighter control of their stock control, ordering and the price they pay for goods.

With the Aztec module, Time and Attendance, it’s much easier to manage staff information and create rotas that meet the different needs of each site.  James explained: “We introduced Time and Attendance just over a year ago and it integrates really well with our labour management software S4. Rather than basing our decisions on a hunch, we now have accurate data to ensure that we have the correct numbers of staff at the right time, which ultimately improves the quality of service we give our customers and drives loyalty.

“The need for paperwork has been severely reduced and although there is more process for our managers to follow, it saves time and improves efficiency.  Because the data is more accurate, it helps them do a better a job, freeing them up to focus on our guests.”

So what’s next for Anglian?  Having reaped the benefits of an EPoS solution, Anglian is now working with Zonal to develop an integrated loyalty programme.  They are also looking at ways in which they can combine their training and HR, so that everything is synchronized.  “We see loyalty as a key motivator to drive business, as consumers increasingly expect to be rewarded with relevant and personal offers for their ongoing custom.  Having a single customer view, which EPoS gives us, enables us to tailor our deals to meet individual needs.

“Working with Zonal has been a rewarding experience and nothing is too much trouble.  Having the singular EPoS platform on which we can build is a very good solution.  Whatever your size, even if you’re just starting out, I would recommend investing in a quality EPoS system, as it’s the very heart of your business and you are more likely to succeed in the long-term than if you try to get by without one,”

Far from taking it easy, bar, café and restaurant group Loungers has been growing at quite a pace since its foundation 16 years ago.

Demand for its laid back winning formula of providing great food and drink in relaxed, comfortable surroundings, has seen Loungers extend its reach beyond its Bristol heartland to more than 120 venues nationwide under its Lounge and Cosy Club brands.  A further 25 sites have been earmarked for this year.

With such ambitious expansion plans, Loungers required a technology partner focused on the hospitality sector that could respond to the needs of an increasingly complex business. So, in stepped Zonal.

Loungers Central Operations Manager, Alex Marsh, said:

“We have a very simple formula, where orders are taken at the bar, but with our rapid growth we needed to take more control of our operating costs and reporting systems.

“The Zonal team not only had relevant sector experience, but their Aztec EPoS system gave us the integrated solution we were seeking.  It offers a range of modules, giving us detailed and timely reports, with up to the minute performance data for each site.”

One of the key modules that Loungers opted for is Zonal’s Acquire, an intuitive end-to-end online purchasing management system which fully integrates with Zonal’s stock solution, giving powerful real-time stock info at the point of order.  Furthermore, Acquire helps achieve efficiencies in every part of the business.  Head office benefits from central control over suppliers, product catalogues and availability, reporting and invoice reconciliation.   Site teams benefit from more efficient, accurate ordering and stock control, with the convenience of being able to order online 24/7 from any mobile technology. And for suppliers, full integration offers massive order processing efficiencies.

Initially, alongside Acquire, Loungers opted to implement their wet products into the stock module within Aztec, but since the autumn of 2017 the business has implemented food too.

Alex explained:

“The wet side was easy to implement and almost immediately we saw a several percentage point uplift in our wet sales gross margins, so it has more than paid for itself.

“The food element has taken time, as the devil’s in the detail.  The more accurate the data you input from the outset, the better the picture you paint of your business.”

For Alex and his project team, they put in the groundwork by covering all aspects of the food business from yield to recipes.  “I’m not going to lie, it was a painstaking task, but the effort has paid off,” added Alex.

Zonal provides a solution for each step of the eating and drinking journey, find out how we can help your business by contacting us on the below form.