Food

Desperate times: Operators share how they are saving energy as electricity bills skyrocket (Getty/ Klaus Vedfelt)

How can pubs save energy?

By Amelie Maurice-Jones

Training staff, switching off equipment and turning down fridge temperatures are just a few ways operators are slashing energy use as electricity bills soar.

Plant-based goodness: How to elevate your veggie and vegan dishes (Getty/ Yagi Studio)

How to make your plant-based menu stand out

By Amelie Maurice-Jones

Award-winning chefs have shared their top tips for creating a vegetarian and vegan menu, after research revealed almost half of UK adults were considering cutting down their intake of animal products.

New appointment: Simon Bonwick (pictured) has been confirmed to be taking over the kitchen at the Princess of Shoreditch from the end of August

Simon Bonwick to join Princess of Shoreditch

By Rebecca Weller

Michelin-starred chef Simon Bonwick has been confirmed to be joining Noble Inns site the Princess of Shoreditch in East London as head chef at the end of August.

Tax equality: JDW chair Tim Martin said if pubs were to survive and thrive in the future, the sector needs to be treated fairly

JDW boss reiterates calls for tax equality

By Nikkie Thatcher

JD Wetherspoon (JDW) chairman Tim Martin has repeated his calls for pubs to have tax equality with supermarkets in order to “survive and thrive in the future”.

Rising costs: business leaders are also planning to increase menu prices by a further 6% over the next 12 months, according to the CGA and Fourth survey (image: Getty/NatashaPhoto)

Firms push up menu prices by 9%

By Nikkie Thatcher

Business leaders have increased prices by 9% on average over the past 12 months with plans to hike them by a further 6% in the next year, research has found.

North-east bound: The Botanist menu includes hanging kebabs, recycled banana and ginger cocktails and vegan choices

North-east opening for The Botanist

By Gary Lloyd

Multiple operator New World Trading Company (NWTC) is set to launch a new site for its brand The Botanist in Sunderland.

Operator comment: Brendan Padfield of the Unruly Pig outlines his thoughts on the current landscape facing the sector

Opinion

'Things can only get better'

By Brendan Padfield, owner, the Unruly Pig, Bromeswell, Suffolk

I am old enough to remember when Tony Blair first got elected and particularly the Labour Party’s then electoral anthem “things can only get better “.

Foodservice inflation: rates reach double-digit percentage for fifth consecutive month (Credit: Getty/neiljlangan)

Drought 'latest in long line of global food supply threats'

By Rebecca Weller

Inflation in the foodservice sector rocketed to 11.5% in June in the fifth consecutive month of double-digit percentage inflation with drought outside of the UK posing the latest threat to supply, the latest edition of the CGA Prestige Foodservice Index...

What's in the news 5 August

Review of the Week

Tom Kerridge: It's a very bumpy road ahead

By Nikkie Thatcher

With inflation dominating the headlines, celebrity chef and pub operator Tom Kerridge has his say on this week's news with The Morning Advertiser's Nikkie Thatcher.

Positive step: independent review into supply chain labour shortages to be carried out (Credit: Getty/Dougal Waters)

DEFRA review into labour shortages

By Rebecca Weller

Review into supply chain labour shortages to be carried out by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) brings a "welcome" and “positive step" forward for the sector, trade bodies across the industry have stated.

Warning: supply of poultry will stay tight into 2023 (credit: Getty/Anchiy)

Poultry supplies to remain tight

By Gary Lloyd

Poultry supplies are expected to remain tight as feed and energy prices are expected to stay high into 2023, according to a new report from catering butcher Birtwistles.

Shaw & Co second annual food and drink report: bars and restaurants continue to struggle post-pandemic (Credit: Getty/Zorica Nastasic)

Mergers and acquisitions could save SMEs

By Rebecca Weller

Turnover in bars and restaurants has continued to struggle in the aftermath of the pandemic, particularly big businesses, while other sub-sectors within the food and drink industry have remained flat, research from the second annual Shaw & Co Food...

Difficult period: BRC warns businesses to prepare for difficult period (Credit: Getty/Luke Chan)

Businesses warned to prepare for 'difficult period'

By Rebecca Weller

Businesses must prepare for a difficult period as fresh food inflation soared to 8% in July 2022, the fastest rate of increase since April 2012, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC).

Hospitality at Home Tracker: CGA and Slerp data reveals restaurant and pub groups’ delivery and takeaway sales plateau after Covid lockdowns (Credit: Getty/10'000 Hours)

Delivery and takeaway sales plateau

By Rebecca Weller

Restaurant and pub groups’ delivery and takeaway sales have continued to plateau after booming during Covid lockdowns, the latest CGA and Slerp Hospitality at Home Tracker has revealed.

Help for Households: businesses urged to sign up for new Gov campaign in bid to tackle inflation (Credit: Getty/sturti)

Gov urges pubs to sign up to cheap meals campaign

By Rebecca Weller

The Government has announced the launch of its Help for Households campaign, urging businesses to offer discounts over the summer holidays in a bid to tackle the cost-of-living crisis.

Research revealed: Lumina Intelligence's Menu Tracker looks at the prices of dishes across the hospitality sector (image: Getty/Luke Chan)

Average pub dish price up 2.3%

By Nikkie Thatcher

The average cost of a dish on a pub and bar menu has risen by 2.3%, according to data from Lumina Intelligence.

What's in the news 22 July?

Adaption will be key to survival

By Ed Bedington

The MA's Ed Bedington caught up with Lee Price operations director of the Royal Pier in Aberystwyth for his take on the week's news, from escalating costs to the rising temperatures.

Q3 update: sales are up at M&B despite challenging conditions

Food drives like-for-like sales at M&B

By Gary Lloyd

Multi-brand pub and restaurant operator Mitchells & Butlers (M&B) has announced a 0.9% like-for-like sales boost in the 42 weeks up to 16 July 2022 with food being the main driver.

Price hikes: Sector suffers with soaring food costs due to supply chain disruption (Getty/ Henrik Sorensen)

Operators’ food costs soar by up to 40%

By Amelie Maurice-Jones

Spiralling costs and supply chain disruption are having a dramatic and unprecedented impact on hospitality operators’ food and drink bills, new research from Fourth has revealed.

Relentless pressure: CGA data shows foodservice sector inflation hit 10% in May (Credit: Getty/Zorica Nastasic)

Inflation in foodservice sector tops 10%

By Rebecca Weller

Inflation in the foodservice sector topped 10% for the fourth successive month in May, the latest edition of the CGA by NielsenIQ and Prestige Foodservice Price Index has revealed.

Ongoing rise: 'All dairy products are seeing high levels of price increase and operators have to expect that to continue,' says Lynx Purchasing boss Rachel Dobson (image: Getty/Adam Gault)

Pubs warned ‘dairy isn’t cheap any more’

By Nikkie Thatcher

Amid reports of a potential dairy shortage, on-trade operators have been urged to shop around when purchasing and make sure they make the most of such goods to ensure their spend is not wasted.

Gen Z driving sector's recovery: 16-24-year-olds spend almost £70 a week in the on trade (Credit: Getty/Henrik Sorensen)

Gen Z spending the most in the on trade

By Rebecca Weller

Those aged 16-24, commonly referred to as Gen Z, have been driving the recovery of the hospitality sector, new research from guest experience platform SevenRooms has revealed.

Post-lockdown depletion: delivery and takeaway sales in managed pub and restaurant groups 29% below May 2021 levels (Credit: Getty/Luis Alvarez)

Delivery and takeaway sales more than a quarter below 2021

By Rebecca Weller

Combined delivery and takeaway sales at Britain’s leading managed restaurant and pub groups have fallen to 29% below the level of May 2021, the CGA by NielsenIQ and Slerp Hospitality at Home Tracker has revealed.

Day part eating up: pubs have captured 13.9% of the eating-out market in the most recent 12-week period (credit: Getty/Henrik Sorensen)

Increase in spend and numbers eating dinner at pubs

By Gary Lloyd

The number of people eating dinner at pubs has risen and their average spend during this day part has increased by 10%, according to data from Lumina Intelligence’s Eating & Drinking Out Panel.

Cost of living crisis: food prices hikes have pushed inflation to a record high

Inflation hits 40-year high at 9.1%

By Gary Lloyd

Rising food, energy and fuel costs has seen the rate of inflation hit 9.1% for May – the fastest rise in 40 years, according to the latest statistics from the Office of National Statistics.

Ainsworth and Banks (l-r): the key is to experience work life at different venues

Gastropub celebs launch employee exchange programme

By James McAllister

Gastropub chefs Paul Ainsworth and Tommy Banks have launched an employee exchange programme, enabling teams to swap companies for a week and experience the workings of another business.

Father’s Day weekend: trade was good at UK pubs even though the weather wasn’t perfect (credit: Getty/djiledesign)

Weather dampens weekend but footfall high

By Gary Lloyd

Trade at pubs during the Father’s Day weekend was good despite predictions for blistering sunshine quickly turning into a damp squib, particularly on Saturday, for many across the UK.

Go after those diners: pubs can offer the same quality, and more, than restaurants (credit: Getty/Xsandra)

Pubs can win custom from restaurants

By Ed Sibley, commercial director, Lumina Intelligence

Consumers are concerned. Whether you are already feeling the pinch or know it’s coming round the corner, the vast majority of the UK are looking to cut back.

Spotlight

(Credit: Getty/dschnarrs) Stay ahead of your rivals with the free Beer Report 2024 The Morning Advertiser's Lock In Podcast episode 77 S4 Ep. 14: Stars in bars! (Feat. James May, Candice Brown and more) Competition kicked off: entry for the 2024 Great British Pub Awards is now open Hunt is under way for the Great British Pub of the Year The Morning Advertiser's Lock In podcast shortlisted for award Lock In podcast shortlisted for top award

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