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Enfield Council catering earns top sustainability rating

Enfield Council catering Goat Gourmet sustainable
Ben Murphy, Nick Stokes, Nadia Stokes, Stephen Brown and Enfield Council Civic Centre restaurant team
11 Sep 2018
Enfield Council, the first in the country to become a member of the Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA), has been awarded a top sustainability rating.

Its Civic Centre restaurant, which feeds 600 council employees plus staff from NHS Royal Free Foundation Trust based in the building, has gained the SRA’s three-star rating.

The effort to earn the top-level accreditation was achieved thanks to help and guidance from award-winning street food concept Gourmet Goat, whose founding partners Nick and Nadia Stokes live in Enfield.

Paul Everitt, Enfield Council’s head of culture, said: “We are currently facing many issues around public health, food waste, decline in local business and our environmental impact.

“The best way to tackle these issues is from within the Council itself.

“To get my fellow co-workers eating healthier options, reducing food waste, using local suppliers and reducing one-use packaging. I am grateful to Nick and Nadia for all their advice and support to get this project off the ground.”

Gourmet Goat’s Borough Market street food has won SRA three-start rating, the Slow Food Awards and a BBC Food & farming Award for its approach to local sourcing and reducing food wastage.

The couple set up a consultancy arm last year and have been working with Enfield since then to revamp the Civic Centre’s food and drinks offer.

It has since introduced new, healthier meals and snacks showcasing the high quality produce available in the borough. The early morning menu now includes a cooked breakfast featuring bread made only a mile away at Holtwhites Bakery and meat from local farms, along with granolas and yoghurt pots.

Enfield Council catering has also recruited a new development chef, Ben Murphy, and a new manager, Stephen Brown.

Nick Stokes, Gourmet Goat co-founder, said: “It has been a fantastic opportunity to help rebuild a restaurant based on sustainable principles, and showcase Enfield’s amazing producers.

“We’re delighted that the Civic Centre’s new food offering has achieved the SRA’s three-star rating so early on, and proved such a success with so much positive feedback from council workers and increased sales.”