QUALITALY 139

May 2024 III MAGAZINE __________________________________ BOX Wise young ideas We issued a challenge to the university students who surprised us with their projects, ideas and slogans. How to communicate the ethical value of food in the eating out sector? Here are the proposed solutions. It is important to make the catering industry aware of not only the economic but also the social and environmental cost of leftovers and to promote sustainable practices in the kitchen. Therefore, issues such as giving food leftovers a new life or incentivising cooks to creatively use near-expiry ingredients become central. Special attention was paid to the social side in terms of both health and community. A key element was identified as working with local authorities to donate surplus food, strengthening the link between restaurants and the community, thus reducing the social injustice that food waste generates. Encouraging restaurants to take an active role in the community also means favouring local suppliers. Finally, the quality of ingredients and culinary techniques have an impact on the health of the body. Catering choices impact on the well-being of society all round. Ethical catering therefore assumes an educational role in making the consumer aware of the food that makes up the dish, so that they can develop an ethic of sustainability that accompanies them in their everyday choices. __________________________________ AT PAGE 8 #CICMEUP A day of networking at the Cattolica AN OPPORTUNITY TO MEET WITH MEMBERS AND SUPPLIERS TO TASTE QUALITALY PRODUCTS AND DISCUSS THE VALUE OF ETHICAL CHOICES AND INNOVATION. by Jessika Pini Quality, research, innovation, shared views and knowledge, meetings and tastings were the ingredients of the day-long conference organised by CIC on 16 March to promote a supply chain dialogue around the theme of communicating the ethical value of food. The event was hosted at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Piacenza and saw the participation of members, suppliers and students and the speeches of numerous guests: university professors, chefs, agricultural and industrial producers and distributors who discussed in two round tables sessions the many nuances that this topic implies: from health to wellness, from sustainability to marketing. The day opened with the presentation of the new CIC logo, in which the highlighting of the first C is intended to reiterate the solidity of the cooperative network underlying the business model, while the subsequent open letters symbolise the desire to create new partnerships by exploring new horizons. The payoff ‘L’altra Distribuzione’ (‘The Other Distribution’) underlines the Cooperative’s different way of choosing food through an ethical approach expressed in the Qualitaly brand. ‘As Cooperativa Italiana Catering, we feel the responsibility to transport the ethics of food to our customers and thus to the end consumers,’ says President Roberto Zanobi . ‘This mission guides us in the selection of Qualitaly-branded products, but also in the way we treat our internal human resources who we want to enjoy their work with gratification and in an inclusive context consistent with the values our company wants to convey’. INNOVATION AWARD During the day, prizes were also awarded to the most innovative products presented by Qualitaly suppliers, selected by a jury of experts and professors from the University. The winner of the ‘innovative packaging’ category was the company Demetra for Crem à poche , a line of professional creams in functional and sustainable packaging for the storage of contents. The most innovative product in the ‘free from’ category was Comal’s sodium-free Pure Cooked Ham, while the winner in the ‘suit for purpose’ category was Manuter from Industrie Celtex: a pack of absorbent sheeting cloths that improve the working of kitchen users and non-expert staff. The winning products, and many others under the Qualitaly brand, were presented in a networking and tasting area by the manufacturers themselves to the many CIC members and event guests. Lastly, space was also given to the ideas of the Cattolica students invited by CIC to present projects to make catering more ethical: Bertoni Giulia, Durosini Clara, Tommaselli Andrea, Gabosi Giovanni and Bortoli Giacomo were the authors of the works judged most interesting and rewarded with a cash prize; their works will be taken into account in the Cooperative’s business projects in the coming months.