2023-01-11
ISS Guckenheimer’s Plant - Forward Protein Strategy is Full of Beans
ISS Guckenheimer has joined the new Beans is How Coalition as a founding partner. The Coalition’s goal is to promote soil health, improve nutrition, and provide increased access to food at a lower cost. The Coalition aims to accomplish this goal by doubling the consumption of beans, peas, pulses, lentils, and legumes globally by 2028.
ISS, a leading global workplace experience and facilities management services provider—including food service delivery—is a leader in the adoption of climate-friendly, sustainably sourced, plant-forward food provision.
"We fully support the Beans is How mission and the opportunity to embrace an ingredient that contributes to a stronger environmental ecosystem, has deep cultural roots, and is accessible for our clients and their communities," said Paul Fairhead, CEO of ISS Guckenheimer, the company's food services brand. He adds: "Initiatives like this that align with our values as an organization and provide our chefs with the opportunity to explore their culinary talents are incredibly compelling, and we will continue to seek them out and embrace them."
“ISS serves one million meals each day globally, crafted by chefs in more than 20 countries, which gives us a unique opportunity to create authentic, locally relevant menus that have lasting impact for our Placemakers, our clients and the planet,” added Hamish Cook, ISS Head of Group Food Services.
Beans is How brings together organizations across industries in their ambition to double the consumption of beans as well as peas, pulses, lentils, and legumes by 2028. The rationale for emphasizing beans as a natural solution to ease food, climate, energy, and cost-of-living pressures include:
- Resilience: can be grown from altitudes ranging from sea level to more than 3,000 meters and in poor soil and harsh conditions
- Soil-friendly: can increase soil nitrogen by converting atmospheric elements
- Nutrition: an excellent source of protein, dietary fiber, iron, zinc, vitamin B, and many other vitamins and minerals
- Affordability: widely consumed and available across the economic spectrum
“Chefs are trustworthy advocates who create sustained momentum via the menus offered, the food sourced, and the causes they champion around the world. How can we tackle the climate crisis through our dining choices? How can we enjoy nutritious and delicious meals that don’t cost the Earth? Beans is How,” said Paul Newnham, Executive Director of the SDG2 Advocacy Hub and Chief Bean Officer. “We are thrilled to be working with one of the leading food service providers to scale our ambition and inspire people to eat more beans.”
The Beans is How initiative is the latest in a series of recent sustainability-focused achievements and milestones for ISS. In the past year, the company has committed to reaching full net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, has signed the Cool Food pledge, is on track to halve food waste in the coming years, adopted a program to reduce hunger and divert surplus food, and achieved the top rank for protein sustainability by The Humane Society of the United States.
The integrated facilities management service mix for ISS includes the provision of technical, food, workplace, and cleaning services, among others. The company provides these offerings across major industry segments, including technology, manufacturing, banking and professional services, life sciences, healthcare, and aviation.