Joe GallopLevy UK + Ireland, the sports and hospitality division of Compass Group UK and Ireland, has agreed a five-year contract extension until 2030 with AEG-owned The O2 arena (cap. 20,000).
Levy said the venue is set to achieve net zero on food and beverage by 2025, in line with the company’s target of achieving net zero itself in the UK by 2027.
It worked with AEG on the Billie Eilish Overheated event series – a climate-focused cross-campus takeover of The O2 arena that saw it switch to vegan only food offerings during the six Billie Eilish concerts at the venue.
Levy said it will work in partnership with venues to use 100% seasonal sourcing for all menus by end of 2022 and will roll out carbon labelling on every food menu. It also aims to have operational food waste under 1% by the end of 2024.
Levy UK + Ireland managing director Jon Davies said, “As part of our Levy Cares initiative, we remain committed to reducing waste produced within our venues while continuing to provide a wide range of food and drink experiences for guests.”
The O2 Arena commercial director Adam Pearson said, “Food and drink have a vital role to play in the pursuit of The O2’s net zero ambitions and wider sustainability aims – so we’re delighted to be working with Levy UK+I on what is a challenging but necessary target of net zero for F&B by 2025. We’ve seen from the recent Billie Eilish shows and Overheated events at The O2 that all of our key stakeholders are as passionate as we are about this and so we’re truly excited to see what can be achieved as we continue to raise the bar.”