Sodexo UK & Ireland welcomed 43 supply partners to Brighton & Hove Albion’s Amex Stadium for its second ‘Partners with Purpose’ supply partner conference, with the agenda focused on themes around sustainable growth and collaboration.
Attended by more than 110 representatives from its supply chain, including SMEs and VCSEs, they shared the latest developments, priorities, and plans in areas such as encouraging sustainable diets, supply chain diversification and achieving net zero 2040.
A key focus of the day was Sodexo informing its supply partners about its new pledge to add further diversity to its supply chains as part of a wider social impact initiative across the organisation. Each supply partner created their own personalised pledge on this topic.
Sodexo’s CEO of corporate services and energy and resources, Julie Ennis, provided insight into how clients are focusing on food and employee experience as talent attraction enablers. She also discussed Sodexo’s ambition to grow significantly in food services and experience-led services.
Sodexo Live CEO Claire Morris shared insight on how embracing digital innovation is driving customer satisfaction in its hospitality offer at more than 45 sites, including the AMEX Stadium.
At last year’s Partners with Purpose conference, Sodexo announced the launch of a roadmap for its supply partners to support not only Sodexo’s net zero journey but also their own. This year, Sodexo also introduced its Green Line vision, which discusses how the wider social impact supply chain agenda will evolve over the coming years.
Sodexo UK & Ireland CEO Sean Haley said: “A collaborative approach is key to sustainability strategies. At Sodexo, just 1% of emissions are under our direct control in scopes 1 and 2, the majority – 99% – lie within scope 3, with 34% stemming from our supply chain. This is why our supply partners play an invaluable role in enabling us to realise our goals, and this annual conference is a chance for us to share our plans our successes and the challenges that lie ahead so we can work together to make a difference.
“At our Partners with Purpose conference last year, we introduced our net zero supplier engagement strategy, a vital component of our overall net zero approach.
“Tremendous progress has been made and in our January 2024 net zero report, we highlighted a notable 30% cut in supply chain emissions from our 2017 levels, cutting 100,903 tonnes of CO2—the equivalent of flying around the world 8,581 times. This achievement is testament to the collaboration between Sodexo and our suppliers.”
