By Alison Wallington, event centre manager, Kent Event Centre
In the last 10-years we have become a nation of foodies. Many of us have cleaned up our eating habits in search of healthier options on the menu and we are far more concerned about the ingredients in our food, where it has come from and if it contains known allergens.
As an industry we have worked hard to adapt to society’s changing food habits by offering healthier options such as fruit alongside biscuits in conference downtime and smoothies alongside tea and coffee during breaks. Gluten free menus are also commonplace.
2014 was a turning point for our industry as new EU food labelling regulations, meaning that allergen ingredient information must be provided in a clearer and more consistent way, came into force. The regulations made life much easier for consumers to make safer food choices when buying food or eating out and meant food providers had to be more open about the ingredients making up their menus.
Despite these changes, I wonder how many delegates are actually reaching for the apple instead of the croissant at events or foregoing a glass of wine for water? Are conference delegates in fact using their day out of the office to enjoy a rich food and conference experience?
At Kent Event Centre we created a healthy options food menu for delegates quite some time ago. We have found that event organisers are choosing to continue offering a richer food experience for guests and take up of these healthy option menus has been low.
Has the industry gone too far the other way when It comes to healthy eating at conferences? Historically conference banquets were all about creating a memorable experience for guests, have we taken that away? Perhaps delegates don’t want to be counting calories when they are at an event and would, in fact, prefer to enjoy a sumptuous spread guilt-free.
