AZZURRI GROUP SUSTAINABLE DINING REPORT FY23

AZZURRI GROUP LOWERS GHG EMISSIONS INTENSITY ~10% AMIDST RESTAURANT GROWTH 

• Market-leading operator of ASK Italian, Zizzi and Coco di Mama launches third annual Sustainable Dining Report revealing it reduced its GHG emissions intensity by 9.7% in 2023 while expanding restaurant portfolio
• Milestone comes as Azzurri Group implemented the first circular food waste initiative of its kind for pizza in the UK hospitality sector
• Takeaway packaging is now 100% recyclable across ASK Italian and Zizzi brands with paper-based takeaway pasta bowls eliminating 48 tonnes of plastic from its supply chain and redesigned pizza boxes cutting over 145,000m² of cardboard – equivalent to 16 football pitches each year
• Coco di Mama brand's partnership with Olio redistributed over 10,000 kilos of surplus food, the equivalent of almost 24,000 meals, across communities in the UK

LONDON, March 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Azzurri Group, a market leader in the Italian casual dining sector, and operator of ASK Italian, Zizzi and Coco di Mama, today launches its third annual Sustainable Dining Report.

During FY23, the company delivered a strong financial performance, opened additional restaurants and expanded its brands' retail offerings. Amidst this period of growth, Azzurri Group achieved a reduction in carbon emissions, both in absolute terms and an even greater intensity reduction of 9.7% (tCO2e/ £1m turnover). The reduction in absolute emissions was primarily driven by strategic developments in the supply chain (targeting scope 3 emissions).

The company's circular food waste initiative – a first-of-its-kind for the UK hospitality sector – contributed to a significant improvement in waste management. The award-winning circularity initiative, in partnership with Bio Collectors, collects restaurant food waste in London and converts this into biogas and fertiliser to support wheat growth. The wheat is harvested by ADM Milling to make flour that's used in 200 ASK Italian and Zizzi restaurants – creating a traceable, closed loop supply chain.

Azzurri achieved its target of using 100% widely recyclable takeaway packaging across its ASK Italian and Zizzi brands, resulting in new purchasing guidelines for buyers and suppliers. The company has transitioned takeaway pasta bowls from recyclable plastic to paper-based packaging – eliminating 48 tonnes of plastic from its supply chain every year. By redesigning takeaway pizza boxes, the company also cut over 145,000m² of cardboard – equivalent to 16 football pitches. 

The Azzurri Group also improved food distribution, cutting over 140,000 food miles. ASK Italian and Zizzi cut 75,000 food miles by partnering with Best Food, while Coco di Mama optimised its delivery strategy, saving 66,000 food miles.

Each of Azzurri's brands made significant contributions to local communities, donating over £120,650 to support important charities. Coco di Mama continued its collaboration with the Felix Project, and in 2023, partnered with Olio to redistribute surplus food to those most in need and further reduce waste. Last year, Coco donated 10,344kg of edible food, the equivalent to 23,861 meals or 146,951 car miles off the road.

In 2023, the company committed to ensuring all restaurant refurbishments and new openings are consistent with SKA building standards, a rigorous third party verified assessment aiming to promote environmental best practices within building fitouts. Zizzi in Leeds and Coco di Mama in Reading achieved SKA Gold Certification this year, bringing the total to three sites with further scheduled for the coming year. Improvements made at Zizzi's Leeds branch lowered its carbon footprint by reducing energy usage by 31% and diverting 100% of waste materials away from landfill.

Stephen Holmes, Chief Executive Officer of Azzurri Group, commented:

"The business made strong progress in 2023, measurably reducing our carbon intensity and absolute emissions while continuing to expand the restaurant portfolio. We've demonstrated our commitment to tackling food waste - one of the industry's most challenging problems - by further enhancing our redistribution strategy to ensure food surpluses are supplied to those most in need. We've also worked hard to improve the circularity of our brands, launching our closed-loop food waste system which is an industry first. I am delighted with our accomplishments in 2023, and efforts are already well underway to ensure we go even further in the future. We remain fully committed to becoming net-zero across our operations and supply chains by 2040, to reduce food waste by 15% by 2030, and to ensure that all out-of-restaurant packaging is widely recyclable by 2025."

NOTES TO EDITORS 

• Employs over 5,500 team members
• Serves over 16 million meals annually
• Estate of over 230 restaurants and shops
• 18 restaurants in the Republic of Ireland

Azzurri's core investments ASK Italian and Zizzi are highly complementary, appealing to a broad customer base, both providing a memorable dining experience and offering great value for money. A constant focus on proposition refinement, menu development and restaurant design keep the brands in a leading position in a highly competitive market.

The group also owns Coco di Mama, a quick service Italian food-to-go business operating 16 stores in London specialising in coffee and pasta and has emerged from the pandemic with a nationwide delivery presence.

Boojum; complemented by the acquisition of the Mexican, fast casual, and Northern Ireland-based operator, Boojum in June 2023. The acquisition of Boojum marked a significant landmark in the development of Azzurri's strategy of investing in growth businesses that can benefit from the investment platform's resources.