SUSTAINABILITY and Impact
At Social Pantry, we have a long history of speaking up on meaningful social issues. We’re the leading prison leaver employer in hospitality and we try to challenge the industry norm with our culture – from a no-shouty kitchen policy to our prison leaver mentoring, it’s an important part of Social Pantry.
A BIT of background
Sustainability has been central to Social Pantry from the start. Championing the best of British suppliers and producers is a key part of what we do – as are menus that celebrate the best of seasonal produce. Guided by a zero-food-waste philosophy, we make a conscious effort to use every edible part of each ingredient.
Our commitment to positive impact goes beyond food: supporting prison leavers is built into the foundations of our business. In partnership with charities and like-minded organisations, we provide opportunities for people leaving prison to gain meaningful experience – from work placements and training to full-time employment.
WE’RE B Corp certified
As of September 2024, Social Pantry is a B Corp-certified business, and a proud member of the global movement that uses business as a force for good!
A B Corp assessment evaluates impact across five pillars – governance, workers, community, environment, and customers – using a scoring system based on the company’s social and environmental performance. To achieve certification, a company must meet rigorous standards of transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement.
WORKING WITH prison leavers
Working within the prison system, alongside charities, Prison Employment Leads (PELs) and prison leavers is a central part of Social Pantry.
Our founder, Alex Head, is on the Employment Board at HMP Wandsworth, providing advice for both employers and prison leavers. In 2025, we also launched The Opportunity Network to bring like-minded organisations together to share advice, best practice and open even more doors for people leaving prison.
GLOBALLY INSPIRED, locally sourced
Fresh, local, seasonal food is at the heart of what we do. We source our produce from the UK, with the exception of items like chocolate, tea or coffee, which are from Fairtrade or trusted direct sources. We regularly review our supply chain and actively engage our suppliers. Social Pantry are committed to high-welfare animal products, and we support regenerative farming practices. We also ensure any third-party products we stock are as thoughtfully chosen as the ingredients on our menus.
FOOD waste
We are a zero-food-waste-to-landfill operation. We begin with good planning at the menu development stage, order carefully, and First Mile collects the scraps.
Social Pantry uses pickling and fermentation to extend the life of fresh produce and collaborates with suppliers to repurpose their waste ingredients. Our chefs reuse off-cuts, fats, bread, and seasonal gluts in dishes. Nose-to-tail and root-to-leaf eating are incorporated across our menus.
ZERO-to-landfill
We’re certified Gold by First Mile for our recycling rates. First Mile operates a zero-to-landfill policy that offers many recycling streams, with non-recyclable waste harnessed for green energy generation. Collections operate on an all-electric fleet and are optimised to utilise clean-air routes.
SERVEWARE & packaging
Our Styled & Served office catering option uses real crockery to eliminate waste. Any single-use packaging is 100% recyclable and/or compostable. We’re also trialling a fully compostable packaging take-back scheme for workplace clients.
DIVESTING from fossil fuels</span
We have been switching to 100% renewable electricity and green gas as contracts expire. Our renewable-powered EV charging station serves our burgeoning fleet of electric vehicles. Our Electric Vehicles cut our average journey emissions by around 75% compared to traditionally fuelled vehicles.
We also ensure new starters are enrolled in a fossil fuel-free ethical pension fund by default.
ANNUAL impact reporting
By becoming B Corp, and pledging to the UN Race-To-Zero Campaign via the SME Climate Hub, we have also committed to annual sustainability reporting that will be publicly available.
This not only guarantees transparency, it also allows us to compare data points year-on-year to ensure we are always pushing in the right direction and bringing our environmental impact down.
