How can you align your ingredient sourcing with your establishment's brand and values?

1 Define your brand and values

Before you can align your ingredient sourcing with your brand and values, you need to define them clearly and consistently. What is your unique selling proposition, your target market, your core values, and your social and environmental impact? How do they relate to your culinary concept, menu, and service style? Write down your brand and values statement and use it as a guide for your sourcing decisions.

2 Choose your suppliers carefully

Once you have defined your brand and values, you need to find suppliers who share them and can meet your standards and expectations. Do some research on the origin, production, and distribution of the ingredients you need, and look for suppliers who can provide transparency, traceability, and certification. For example, if you value sustainability, you might look for suppliers who use organic, fair trade, or local ingredients. If you value innovation, you might look for suppliers who offer new or exotic ingredients or techniques.

5 Seek collaboration and support

Aligning your ingredient sourcing with your brand and values can be challenging and rewarding, but you don't have to do it alone. You can seek collaboration and support from various stakeholders, such as your suppliers, customers, staff, peers, or industry associations. You can leverage their expertise, insights, resources, or networks to help you achieve your sourcing goals and overcome your sourcing challenges. You can also share your best practices, challenges, and successes with them, and learn from their experiences.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?