Welcome
Colin Morrison, Group Director of Marketing & Customer Experience
It would be impossible to open this edition without mention of the devastating events taking place in Ukraine right now. We all watch in horror and hope for a quick resolution. From both a human and economic perspective it is a time of deep anxiety. Yet our lives and businesses continue. It’s important to focus on positivity and consider how we cope with uncertainty (as we’ve done so well for two years). We can take comfort in the fact that restrictions are easing, a welcome development for the hospitality industry. And we can continue to champion and celebrate worthwhile causes: last month's Fairtrade Fortnight and International Women's Day being perfect examples.
In this edition, we introduce you to the John Muir Trust, a community-focused conservation charity dedicated to the experience, protection and repair of wild places across the UK. Scots-born John Muir was passionate about wild places. He explored them, wrote about them and campaigned to protect them. He believed in protecting wild places for the wellbeing of people and wildlife and that’s something our team truly cares about and why we’re proud to launch our new partnership with the John Muir Trust and through coffee, help share their story and do good. Our Head Of Marketing, Jill Wotherspoon introduces our Climate-Positive Peak and Wild coffee. We’ve also recently shared the news we’ve joined forces with other leading hospitality and foodservice businesses to tackle the most important issues facing our industry. As one of the founding members of the Global Coffee Institute, we’ll provide an independent voice for the coffee industry and help shape a sustainable and profitable future.
Our Customer Marketing Manager, Roslyn Coombe shares her top three takeouts and recommendations from the new Allegra Project Café Report. She highlights the importance of simplicity and focuses on why sustainable/ethical choices are key to future decision-making.
For two weeks each year at the end of February and the start of March, thousands of individuals, companies and groups across the UK come together to share the stories of people who grow our food and drinks- the people who are often exploited and underpaid. We welcome Cat Rayner from Fairtrade to the Coffee Extract for our guest article where she explains how Fairtrade is tackling climate issues by helping farmers swap skills and knowledge to tackle the issues thrown their way.
Finally, In April, some businesses (with 250 or more employees) in England will be required by new legislation to implement mandatory calorie labelling where food or drink is prepared for immediate consumption. The information forms part of the government's plans to tackle obesity and help consumers make healthier choices. Large businesses such as restaurants, hotels, cafes, supermarkets, sporting venues will be monitored and it’s important if you’re part of a franchise or larger contract catering partnership you follow the guidelines too. We’ve put together some information regarding the new legislation and useful resources to help ahead of these changes. We wish you all the best for the new season and days ahead!
Colin Morrison
Group Director of Marketing & Customer Experience
Colin has worked within the coffee industry for 14 years. He began working with the Matthew Algie team at the start of 2020 and has a true passion to create new brands, products and business models to support customers. He has been keen to not let Covid slow any progress for our Matthew Algie brand. Most recently he has completed a Digital leadership qualification and sees brand and customer experience as one. Understanding the digital impact has and can help shape and grow coffee businesses.