Leading operators come together to establish Zero Carbon Forum

Burger King, Brewdog, Nando’s and The Restaurant Group are among leading hospitality operators who have come together to establish the Zero Carbon Forum.

Endorsed by government and backed by UK Hospitality and the British Beer and Pub Association, the forum is intended to identify the quickest and most cost effective reduction path to net zero emissions.

An initial 18 companies have come together as founders – which also includes Pizza Hut Restaurants, Revolution Bars and Fuller’s – and membership is set to grow throughout 2021.

The businesses involved have agreed to share carbon reduction plans and initiatives, combine expertise and resources, and to identify all possible actions to decarbonise operations across tens of thousands of outlets and supply chains.

The forum will publish a roadmap to achieve net zero carbon by September 2021, ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference.

“Our goal is for hospitality to achieve net zero faster, together,” said founder and CEO of the Zero Carbon Forum, Mark Champman. “The window of opportunity to avert climate change disaster is closing fast and we must focus on reducing emissions and a path to net zero.

“We are already working on a number of collaborative decarbonisation initiatives with the backing of CEOs from the biggest brands and have engaged the support of leading sustainability experts to ensure the sector can quicken the pace of transition to a net zero economy.

“Cutting carbon emissions also cuts business costs so our solutions to tackling the climate crisis will help us bounce back more strongly from the pandemic. Hospitality is committed to working together at pace to decarbonise its operations and support the government’s green industrial revolution.”