On our second birthday, we have plenty to celebrate!
Since launching our new identity in 2017, the Radish family has grown in strength and passion. We celebrated a number of achievements over the course of 2018 including the launch of the Radish website and shortlisting for Contract Caterer of the Year at the 2018 EDUcatering Awards. Our success has continued into 2019.
Quality for all
At the beginning of 2019, we launched our partnership with IDC and in July 2019 we secured a further partnership with Fresh Direct, which supplies our chefs with fully traceable products from local and regional sources. This ensures that all our suppliers are fully accredited and have exceptional quality and sustainability standards. We are also supporting our local dairies by continuing our supply from Pensworth Dairy, which ensures we use locally sourced dairy products across all our sites.
We are continuously working with our suppliers to significantly reduce our carbon footprint.
Cooking up a competition
With the confidence that we had the highest quality produce and incredibly talented chefs, Radish was ready to take on bigger challenges. In January, our chef Sara Franklin reached the finals of the LACA National School Chef of the Year competition and appeared on the BBC One Show.
Later in the year, our Craft and Development Chef, Tony Lones, was selected as a finalist in the Business and Industry StrEAT Food Awards. We are confident that we can scoop some wins next year.
Health is wealth
Always looking to inspire kids to enjoy healthy eating, we launched our Veg Power ‘Power Up Station’ earlier this year. As part of the initiative, we encourage primary school children to try a different vegetable every week. Each one is used in a dish to show children how great recipes can make vegetables delicious. We have incorporated our vegetables into salads, breads, and dips.
Catering for a long life
In January 2019, we introduced our Long Service Achievement, awarding staff for every five years they are a part of the Radish family. We value the incredible community our people create and want to celebrate those who are a part of it. The recipients are announced on a monthly basis.
On the other end of the time scale, we are proud to introduce new DCS 100 per cent recyclable coffee cups. The individual cups may not be receiving any long service awards, but their eco-friendly design ensures they don’t stick around in landfill sites either. We are very proud to say that this cup was born in the UK. The recyclable cups only travel on average 199 miles to get to our sites, in contrast the average disposable cup comes from the far east, over 6,183 miles away.
Looking forward
In the new year, Radish will officially launch its new look and a new menu on a three-week cycle for our secondary school clients. Its debut at Campion secondary school in Northamptonshire has been incredibly successful and we look forward to bringing more events and innovations to schools across the country including parent engagement, work experience, a student survival guide, and themed calendar events throughout the year, such as Bonfire Night, Veganuary, and Healthy Heart Valentines.
Radish is a family of passionate foodies and innovators. Our mission is to bring vibrant and sustainable food to the table for everyone, educating and inspiring as we do it. We continued strengthening our current client partnerships and started some exciting new ones this year with clients in B&I and assisted living sectors. We’re hungry to see what 2020 will bring!
