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The hospitality and
tourism sectors will
receive a much needed
boost of around £2billion
during the Olympics,
says a report.
This is great news for an industry
already suffering from a recession
and the knock on effects of Iceland’s
volcanic eruption.
VisitBritain predicts that two-thirds of
the bumper figure will be reaped up
to four years AFTER the games.
Jan Matthew, head of Olympic
catering, says: “This is a huge catering
opportunity for every region in the UK.
“It is a great opportunity for the whole
country to show the rest of the world
what fantastic food we have here.”
Organisers of the games have pledged
that the food served in the Olympic
village will be British “wherever
possible” - claiming big foreign
brands like McDonalds’ and Coca-Cola
will supply only 20 per cent of
overall products.
Around 14million meals will be served
during the Olympic and Paralympic
Games, across 40 locations nationwide.
All dairy products, beef, lamb and
poultry supplied will be British. In
addition, bananas, tea, coffee and sugar
will be Fairtrade and traditional British
cheese such as cheddar must be British.
British Food Fortnight, the two-week
promotion of British food, is to coincide
with the 2012 games - and operators are
urged to get involved.
Adds Jan: “The Olympic torch relay will
come within 50 miles of everyone in the
UK and caterers need to start thinking
about what they can do when it comes
to their area.”
Olympic catering aims to set new
standards for catering at UK events.
London 2012 Chief Executive Paul
Deighton said: “We want to ensure
everyone at the Games has a fantastic
experience and key to that is the food
and drink that’s available - we want
it to be affordable, sustainable and
celebrating the fantastic diversity and
quality of what Britain has to offer.”
He adds: “We also want to ensure
that there is a great legacy for the
catering industry in this country,
ensuring it is even better equipped
to provide quality, sustainable food
and drink for events both large
and small.”
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