Why Good Food = Good Business

What is ‘good food’? In the 1970s and ‘80s, I grew up in Holland with simple staples: meat, veg and potatoes. The country isn’t necessarily known for its culinary prowess, and my mother’s cooking skills were no exception. She’d ‘rather read than cook’. Our more exotic dinner choices included pasta (brand new from Italy, served with ketchup) or pizza (decorated with sugary pineapple from a tin).

If my childhood foods are unlikely to be the definition of ‘good food’, what does define it? Taste? Nutrition? Provenance? These are all part of what we call the 'food system': the long and complex chain that brings food to our plates and determines how, and what, we eat. This system isn't working for everyone. Worldwide, one billion people are hungry and two billion people are overweight. The food industry is responsible for more than 20% of all greenhouse gas emissions, and shockingly, one third of all food produced ends up being thrown away.

As one of the biggest food companies in the world, at Unilever we feel strongly about our responsibility to contribute to a better system. So, let’s talk about what we can do to transform the food system - and why making it better for people and planet, will also be good for business.

1. Our Future Foods Commitments

Unilever’s purpose is ‘to make sustainable living commonplace’. That’s why we recently announced our Future Foods ambition, aimed at helping people transition towards healthier diets while reducing the environmental impact of the global food chain. We made a number of bold, new public commitments in six areas critical to food system transformation:

·        A €1 billion annual sales target for plant-based meat and dairy alternatives within the next five to seven years

This will be driven by the roll-out of The Vegetarian Butcher as well as increasing vegan alternatives for brands including Hellmann’s, Ben & Jerry’s, Magnum and Wall’s.

·        To double the number of products delivering positive nutrition globally, by 2025

Foods that are ‘nutrition positive’ contain significant, impactful amounts of crucial macro nutrients, like vegetables or proteins, and/or micro-nutrients, like vitamins and minerals. Adding positive nutrition to everyday products like stock, soups or tea can help make healthier habits easier.

·        To halve food waste in our direct global operations, by 2025

This means everything from factory to shelf, and is five years earlier than we had previously committed to, as part of the Champions 12.3 coalition target.

·        To continue reducing salt, sugar and calorie levels

All our children’s ice creams are already 110 calories or less, and between 2010 and 2019, we removed 23% of sugar across all our sweetened teas. 85% of Unilever’s Foods portfolio will help ensure that consumers do not intake more than 5g of salt per day, by 2022[1] and 95% of Unilever’s packaged ice cream will not contain more than 22g of total sugar, and 250 Kcal per serving, by 2025.   

·        To further increase the sustainable sourcing of our products

While 95% of our ingredients for Knorr are already sustainably sourced, by 2023, our entire global supply chain will be 100% deforestation-free. Our sourcing initiatives aim to boost smallholders farmer incomes and foster sustainable agricultural practices.

·        To reduce the amount of new, virgin plastic in our packaging

As a business, we have committed to halving our use of virgin plastic by reducing our absolute use of plastic packaging by more than 100,000 tonnes and accelerating the use of recycled plastic, by 2025.

2. Letting Our Brands Lead the Way  

At Unilever, our brands are our lifeblood. They are present in more than 190 countries. You’ll find at least one Unilever brand in 70% of households around the world. Therefore, iconic global brands like Knorr, Lipton and Ben & Jerry’s are a great means of helping people eat in fairer, healthier and more sustainable ways. For example:

·        Hellmann’s is dedicated to ‘Making Taste, not Waste’

The brand has already reached more than 100 million people with campaigns that help transform leftovers into tasty meals, helping us all cut down on the food waste that happens in our homes.

·        This year, we completed the acquisitions of Horlicks and Boost

Staples in South Asian households for generations, these brands will play a big role in delivering our positive nutrition commitments. Horlicks Classic, for example, contains nine nutrients (vitamin B6, B12, C, D, copper, folic acid, iron, selenium and zinc) and is clinically proven to support immunity.

·        Another recent acquisition is The Vegetarian Butcher

Providing delicious vegetarian meat, chicken and sausages (their Little Willies and ‘Auf WiederSchnitzel’ are my favourites!), we are proud of expanding this brand from the Netherlands – where it is the market leader – to more than 30 countries already in the last two years. Burger King has been a great expansion partner, which brings me to my last point:

3. Partnership Is the New Leadership

We know that we cannot transform the food system alone. Collaboration with farmers, NGOs, governments, universities, customers and communities is a must to create the changes we all want to see. Our brands may lead the way, but to meet our goals, we need to be working with all parts of the supply chain. For example:

·        Ben & Jerry’s has a longstanding collaboration with dairy farmers

The Caring Dairy programme pays a premium to farmers who commit to sustainable practices.  

·        Knorr partnered with WWF-UK

Together we co-released the Future 50 Foods report, highlighting 50 diverse vegetables, pulses and roots that are nutrient-rich and have low environmental impact.

·        As Unilever, we support the EU’s Green Deal and the UN’s first ever 2021 Food Systems Summit

Just this November, we co-hosted a pre-event together with the University of Wageningen and other stakeholders.  

‘Good Food’: A New Approach and A Chance For Growth  

So, back to where we started: what is ‘good food’? My childhood diet probably didn’t qualify. But today, when given the choice, people around the world invariably choose foods that combine great taste; health; an affordable price; and don’t harm the environment.

Delivering that type of food to everyone, everywhere, requires a fairer, healthier and more sustainable global food system. And, while system change can be difficult, as a business, it’s simply a growth opportunity we can't afford to miss.

For more information about how we are working with others to transform food systems for the better, visit: https://bit.ly/2It4oI3

[1] WHO recommends that adults consume less than 5 g (just under a teaspoon) of salt per day.