Aramark Canada, a leading provider of food and facilities services, announced the launch of a new sustainability plan Be Well. Do Well., focused on positively impacting people and the planet. Be Well. Do Well. is built around two key priorities:

  • Our People priorities are to engage employees, empower healthy consumers, and support local sourcing and community.
  • Our Planet priorities are to source responsibly, and to effectively manage food waste, packaging, emissions and other activities that could adversely impact the environment and planet.

“Aramark strives to do our part with respect to environmental, economic, social and ethical considerations,” said Andy Siklos, Aramark Canada President. “The guiding principle behind Be Well. Do Well. has been about putting people first. When we look after each other, it becomes easier to collectively look after the planet.”

Aramark’s people priority is to facilitate access to opportunities that will improve the wellbeing of the company’s employees, consumers, communities and people in its supply chain. Building on current work, Aramark is enabling better access to healthy foods, and encouraging their customers to choose them. The company is also helping to build communities through support of local business and through career development opportunities for their employees.

A key component of advancing goals associated with this people priority is Aramark’s focus on elevating its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion strategy. Aramark is committed to engaging a workforce that is reflective of the communities that they serve, as well as building a culture of inclusion in the workplace that empowers employees to bring their whole selves to work every day. Now, more than ever, the company recognizes the importance of programs, structures, and systems that create concrete positive change, in addition to offering their associates a better career experience.

With respect to the environment, Aramark has been a consistent name on the Canada’s Greenest Employers list—released annually by Canada’s Top 100 Employers®—since 2013, and has achieved the recognition once again in 2021. To build further on this past success, the company is focusing on several broad and ambitious initiatives, including mitigating climate change. Strategies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions include offering more vegan and vegetarian meals, sourcing responsibly, minimizing food waste, and reducing packaging.

“It is great to see Aramark putting equal emphasis on people and planet,” said Meghan Fay Zahniser, Executive Director, Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). “We applaud them for focusing on reducing their environmental footprint with efforts that include the reduction of food waste and packaging, while the increase in plant-forward dining options helps support the health and wellbeing of our communities.”

The company’s efforts have already shown significant progress to date. For example, efforts to improve the health and wellbeing of their customers is evidenced through Get the Good Stuff™, an industry-leading healthy menu program that has significantly lowered calories, sodium and saturated fats from recipes used in a variety of our business segments, including higher education, business and industry, and healthcare. Get the Good Stuff™ recipes now constitute 25% of the menus offered in these segments.

Aramark has also made important strides in supporting Indigenous communities, including a Gold Level recognition from the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business for Progressive Aboriginal Relations. The company has also renewed an eight-year partnership with CreeQuest, a First Nations-owned enterprise providing employment opportunities and community investment through local mining operations.

Recently, the company also advanced their commitment to protect the health of the oceans by expanding the scope of an existing partnership with the Marine Stewardship Council™ (MSC). Aramark is now serving MSC-certified tuna at several locations, as well as sustainable farmed seafood certified by the MSC’s sister organization, Aquaculture Stewardship Council™ (ASC).

With the launch of Be Well. Do Well. in Canada, Aramark will further accelerate a positive impact on people and planet over the next five years.

For more information on Aramark’s Be Well. Do Well., visit the company’s new online resource, www.aramark.ca/sustainability

SOURCE Aramark Canada Ltd