Celebrating Our Sustainability Achievements
At Event Exeter, sustainability is woven into every conference, meeting and event we deliver. Over the past year, we’ve continued to turn ambition into action, embedding responsible sourcing, low-carbon operations and ethical procurement into every plate served, every cup poured and every delegate experience created.
Working in close partnership with our Campus Services teams, here’s a look at what we’ve achieved together.
Growing Our Own: 1,000kg+ of Fresh Produce
Our Streatham Campus kitchen garden has flourished, producing more than 1,000kg of fresh fruit and vegetables that went directly into our catering menus, including those enjoyed by conference and event delegates.
This hyper-local approach reduces food miles, supports seasonal menu planning and brings a true field-to-fork story to the events we host.
Serving Sustainable Choices at Every Event
We continue to reshape our menus to lower environmental impact while maintaining the quality, variety and creativity our clients expect.
Over the past year we have:
- Served over 100,000 vegan and vegetarian meals
- Poured 12,780 litres of plant-based milk, accounting for more than 10% of all milk used
- Introduced venison as a more sustainable meat option
- Achieved a further 1.4% reduction in meat sales across campuses
- Served 314,000+ Fairtrade hot drinks
- Served 136,000+ hot drinks in reusable cups
Our commitment to ethical sourcing has been recognised with a 2-star rating in the Fairtrade Universities Award, reflecting the work taking place across campus to embed Fairtrade principles into procurement and hospitality.
For our conference clients, this means menus that not only taste exceptional but align with organisational sustainability goals and responsible event standards.
Responsible Sourcing and Local Partnerships
Sourcing locally remains central to our food philosophy. Our meat is butchered locally, reducing transport emissions and supporting regional producers. We also collaborate with local traders across our outlets and event activities, ensuring our hospitality offer reflects and supports the wider Devon economy.
These efforts contributed to maintaining our 3-star rating - the highest possible grading from the Sustainable Restaurant Association.
This recognition reinforces our commitment to transparency, integrity and continuous improvement - principles that underpin both our catering and our event delivery.
Supporting Our Student Community
As a university-based conference venue, social value is central to our mission. Last year, we supported over 200 students through casual hospitality employment, providing flexible work that builds professional skills, confidence and financial resilience alongside academic study.
Quality Recognised: ISO 9001:2015 Recertification
Sustainability and quality go hand in hand, and we are proud to share that Event Exeter has been successfully recertified to the internationally recognised ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Standard, awarded by the BSI Group.
Following a rigorous external audit, our team demonstrated that our systems, processes and customer journey consistently meet the highest international standards. The recertification highlights our continued commitment to delivering high-quality conference and event experiences, underpinned by continuous improvement.
Looking Ahead
From garden-grown produce and composting innovations to Fairtrade leadership, carbon-cutting kitchen upgrades and internationally recognised quality standards, 2024–2025 has been a year of meaningful progress.
These achievements reflect the collective efforts of our teams, students, suppliers and partners. Together, we are proving that exceptional events, sustainable food systems and responsible business practices can, and should, go hand in hand.
Here’s to building on this momentum in the year ahead.