BaxterStorey is an independent hospitality provider on a sustainable nutrition mission. Feeding over 1 million mouths every day, they cater to 791 locations in the UK and 131 locations in Europe.
About the partnership:
In 2023, BaxterStorey became the first hospitality provider in the UK to commit to the #BeansOnTheMenu across all its cafes and eateries, making beans a staple in their offerings.
Over the course of the next year, Lizzie Henning, Head of Nutrition at BaxterStorey, partnered with renowned plant-based chef and Chefs’ Manifesto Ambassador, Bettina Campolucci Bordi to inspire and educate chefs, sharing culinary techniques and specially crafted recipes to ensure beans take center stage across all their menus.
The results:
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19.6% increase in pulse spend, reflecting a growing demand and enthusiasm for beans.
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Widespread chef engagement, sparking creativity in the kitchen.
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Positive customer response, showcasing a shift towards sustainable dining habits.
How did they do this?
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Organizational leadership:
- Announced their commitment publicly and had a strong internal champion.
- Collaborated with a world-renowned celebrity chef.
- By June 2024, made it mandatory for all locations to include at least one bean dish on their menu.
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Chef Training & Education:
- Conducted mandatory training sessions for chefs at all cafes to learn new culinary techniques for how to include more beans into their menus.
- Workshops led by Bettina to share knowledge, techniques.
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Friendly culinary competitions to promote Beans is How:
- Organised chef competitions to create simple, cost-effective, and innovative bean-based dishes.
- Designed dishes to fit into salad bars, main courses, or desserts, making them easy to replicate across multiple sites while increasing pulses in innovative ways.
- The aim was to educate chefs and get them excited about beans and other pulses. Greg Bramwell, Director of Food and Beverage at BaxterStorey and Chef Bettina have shared that chefs were excited to get alternate protein into dishes.
- As a result, purchases of beans and other pulses skyrocketed. Greg Bramwell points out giving chefs the freedom to experiment and make their own dishes was key – instead of forcing the ingredients or benefits of ingredients onto them in any specific way.
- Educating chefs became a way to reach and educate customers, who responded enthusiastically, further validating the approach.
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Menu Development & Expansion:
- Launched 7 easy-to-implement bean-based recipes, demonstrating versatility.
- Showcased how beans can be used in multiple forms—cooked, blended into hummus, baked into desserts, crisped into snacks, and incorporated into salads and soups.
“Since becoming involved with Beans is How, my mission has been to spread the love of beans and teach people how to use them in diverse recipes. Beans have always been a big part of my life, thanks to my multicultural upbringing. More people need to learn about the incredible versatility and potential of beans, and I am proud to be one of the chefs championing #BeansOnTheMenu through my professional platform.”
– Chef Bettina Campolucci Bordi, Founder of Bettina’s Kitchen, plant-based chef, cookbook author, Chefs’ Manifesto Advocate
“BaxterStorey launched Beans is How last year as part of our sustainable nutrition mission, with an overarching ambition to serve more plants and reduce the carbon emissions of the foods we offer. To date, the campaign has been implemented across more than 700 locations and preliminary data indicates we are nudging our teams and customers in the desired direction.”
– Lizzie Foskett, Head of Nutrition at BaxterStorey
“We created internal competitions around the Beans is How movement. We started to then feed back around the bean, lentils and pulses purchases, and people were getting excited about it.
More importantly, the customers were buying it. So when customers then start doing it and sales start, everyone comes on the journey. So we’ve been doing it now for probably 18 months, probably to literally push in two years.”
-`Greg Bramwell, Director of Food and Beverage at BaxterStorey
Looking Ahead
With ambitious plans for 2025 and beyond, BaxterStorey is poised to scale this initiative even further, reinforcing its position as a trailblazer in sustainable hospitality.
Want to learn more?
ARTICLE: Read about BaxterStory’s #BeansOnTheMenu successes, Facilities Management industry magazine, February 2025.
ARTICLE: BaxterStorey’s original partnership announcement with Chef Bettina Campolucci and Beans is How, The Caterer, October 2023.
