Sustainable gastronomy

Did you know that food systems are responsible for about a third of the global greenhouse gas emissions?¹ That's why sustainable gastronomy and resilient food systems can make an important contribution towards achieving net-zero emissions. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates that food-related emissions must be cut globally by at least 50% by 2030 to reach the Paris climate goals.² Scientific calculations show that a shift towards more plant-based nutrients is one of the most effective measures to reach this target, as about 60% of the greenhouse gas emissions from food systems come from animal products.³

At Swiss Re, gastronomy plays an important role and is part of our culture. Every day, we serve thousands of meals to our colleagues, clients and guests worldwide. The greenhouse gas emissions associated with our in-house catering services contribute to Swiss Re’s total operational footprint. 

That's why the Global Strategy for Sustainable Gastronomy was launched in 2020. Our long-term aim is to offer healthy, nutritious and delicious food with a reduced environmental and social footprint, considering the entire food supply chain, from production to packaging and distribution.

Based on these objectives, we defined the three pillars "minimal food and disposable waste", "resilient food systems" and "greenhouse gas emissions reductions", with defined ambitions until 2030. 

• Pillar 1: We strive to provide our services by minimising waste, redistributing leftovers, using reusable cutlery and crockery instead of single-use products, and finding innovative ways to store and deliver food without creating packaging waste.
• Pillar 2: Wherever possible, we source regional, seasonal and organic products and work with suppliers who share Swiss Re's values and care for their employees, the environment and animal well-being.
• Pillar 3: We reduce the emissions from the food we serve by using fewer but high-quality, sustainably produced animal products, offering diverse and nutritious plant-based options and measuring our greenhouse gas emissions.

Since 2022, a strong focus was put on the greenhouse gas emissions pillar, with the initial goal of developing a measurement strategy. In the meantime, our restaurants in Zurich (CH), Armonk (US), Folkestone (UK) and Bangalore (IN) are monitoring the greenhouse gas emissions of their food purchases, in close collaboration with their in-house caterers.

A restaurant-specific reduction path was defined for the restaurants mentioned, which includes among other things an increase of plant-based offerings. On our path to sustainable gastronomy, we count on the expertise of our teams around the globe to find solutions that are tailored to their regional and cultural needs.

While our global restaurants account for about 80% of the greenhouse gas emissions from our in-house catering services, the around 40 global office locations with coffee break zones represent the remaining 20%.

For these zones, the focus of improvement measures is on coffee beans and dairy products. In addition to sourcing coffee with high and credible sustainability standards, we offer plant-based alternatives to cow’s milk wherever possible.