Written by: Sarah Kyte

Entrepreneurs who want to open "green restaurants" will benefit from a recently launched network promoting the ethical approach to catering.

"Ethical Eats" was launched in early April by London Food Link, part of food and farming charity Sustain. It aims to provide restaurant owners in the capital with more information about ethical sourcing of ingredients, dealing responsibly with waste and putting sustainability at the heart of catering.

Restaurateurs and chefs who attended the first Ethical Eats meeting said the initiative will make it easier for entrepreneurs to set up more ethical restaurants in the future.

"If you want to set up your own ethically-sourced restaurant, you have to be resourceful, determined, a bit of an idealist and have a strong vision," says Allegra McEvedy, owner of the Leon chain of healthy fast food restaurants.

"You need to talk to as many people as you can who are doing something you admire. Come and talk to us and see the bits we are doing right. Glean information out of anyone who has got it. Keep trying and don't compromise."

Caroline Bennett, founder of Japanese sushi chain Moshi Moshi, says anyone interested in opening an ethical restaurant must also do their homework. She says that even though it's becoming easier to open a “green” restaurant, it takes much longer and can be confusing.

She says: "You have to learn to know what to ask your suppliers. It's a minefield. A supplier might tell you: 'Yes, it's 100% biodegradable cornstarch.' But the next question you'd need to ask would be: 'Is the cornstarch GM-free?' Unless you know a little bit about the subject, you'll be given answers that sound great but you won't be getting the whole picture."

Bennett says Ethical Eats will help new restaurateurs to be more ethical and have more time to concentrate on running a successful business.

The network meets every two months and is attended by London restaurateurs and representatives from campaign groups like Greenpeace, the Marine Stewardship Council and other environmentalists.

"The restaurant business has a bad reputation ethically in terms of the working conditions of chefs and waiters and how much waste is produced," says McEvedy. "Hopefully Ethical Eats will help to change this."

Ethical Eats

http://www.sustainweb.org/news.php?id=176

Leon

www.leonrestaurants.co.uk

Moshi Moshi

www.moshimoshi.co.uk

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