The final speaker slot for the Business Day programme goes to Marcel Khan, CEO of Thunderbird Fried Chicken.

Spending six years as Operations and Brand Development Director for Five Guys Europe, Marcel launched the US’s fastest growing restaurant chain in the UK, France, Spain and Germany. He oversaw over 90 restaurants including what would become eight of the company’s best-performing outlets in the world.

Before Five Guys, Marcel was Regional MD for Nando’s UK for almost a decade where he helped the brand grow from 42 to over 260 sites and became the company’s top internal management developer.

Prior to his time at Nando’s, Marcel held various operational managerial roles at UK restaurant chains including Loch Fyne, the Belgo Group, and Planet Hollywood.

Now serving as CEO of Thunderbird Fried Chicken, the TriSpan backed dynamic street-food to high street restaurant project undergoing expansion, Marcel continues to take on new challenges.

ceda Director General, Adam Mason, comments; “To be able to announce Marcel in addition to the speakers and presenters already confirmed is wonderful. He is a leading light in the industry with an incredibly impressive CV and still very much driving growth, innovation and disruption in the sector. I’m delighted with the final programme that we have put together for our Business Day, the calibre of the individuals is outstanding and their respective areas of expertise will blend really well.”

We can finally reveal, the BIG interview at the ceda Conference 2019 will be with Jamie Barber.

Jamie is a serial Restaurateur and Entrepreneur.

Having owned and operated many restaurant brands in the UK, including Kitchen Italia, Villandry and Sake No Hana, he is currently the co-founder and CEO of Hush Restaurants and Cabana, and co-CEO of Haché Burgers.

Many will know and recognise Jamie as an investor on the BBC’s ‘Million Pound Menu’ where street food concepts compete for investment and mentorship from leading figures in the restaurant industry.

In recognition of the contribution Barber has made to the restaurant business, he was nominated at the Tatler Restaurant Awards for “Outstanding Contribution to London Restaurants.”

ceda Director General, Adam Mason, comments; “To be able to announce Jamie in addition to the speakers and presenters already confirmed is wonderful. He is a leading light in the industry with an incredibly impressive CV and still very much driving growth, innovation and disruption in the sector. I’m delighted with the final programme that we have put together for our Business Day, the calibre of the individuals is outstanding and their respective areas of expertise will blend really well.”

The 2019 ceda Conference is now just 7 days away. Held next week on Thursday 4th & Friday 5th April at Heythrop Park in Oxfordshire, the event programme is crammed full of speakers interesting personalities from across the industry. To see the full event line-up please visit ceda.co.uk/conference

The Universal Cookery & Food Festival 2019 from the Craft Guild of Chefs is a unique, annual event, designed by chefs, for chefs.

Taking place at Farrington Oils, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire on 25^th June 2019, the festival is an ideal opportunity for ceda Members to network with industry professional chefs. Alternatively, you may wish to invite your network of chefs along and host them for a fun ,professional, foodie day out.

The aim of the event is to bring together chefs/cooks with growers, farmers, fishermen, foragers, producers, doctors, scientists et al to promote education around food and a better appreciation of the role we all play in it. This is done in a very informal, relaxed, outdoor and fun environment.

The event likes to tackle industry topics and issues on our main stage panel debates. Historically they have discussed and debated obesity, mental health, sustainable fishing, organic vs conventional farming and many more. This year the main stage topics include Crowd Funding, Brexit, Mum’s in the Kitchen, From the Land, Plastic Population and Local Heroes.

Other attractions on the day include farm tours, foraging tours, clay pigeon shooting, a game stage and learning about fermented foods. The day is rounded off with a BBQ, live band and beer!

Book NOW!

ceda Members can book tickets for The Universal Cookery & Food Festival 2019 at the reduced, early bird rate of £99 +VAT (which usually finishes at the end of March).

Ticket price includes:

• Food market entry
• Foraging tours
• On-site demos
• All session access
• All stage access
• Free breakfast | lunch | dinner
• Free beer | tea | coffee | OJ | water
• Free evening BBQ & beer
• Live band

Book your tickets here. Use code CEDA99 when booking.

We’re delighted to announce the shortlist of nominees for this year’s ceda Supplier Awards!

The Supplier Awards are voted for by ceda members, for the suppliers they feel have delivered the best overall service in terms of quality of product, support and service.

Recognition is given to three categories; Heavy Equipment, Light Equipment, Accessories & Spares and Outstanding Customer Service.

Successful companies have been informed and it is our pleasure to now announce the 2019 shortlist, along with this year’s sponsor, Commercial Kitchen.

Heavy Equipment
Maidaid-Halcyon Ltd
Meiko UK Ltd
Rational UK Ltd

Light Equipment Accessories & Spares
Commercial Catering Spares Ltd
First Choice Catering Spares Ltd
Mechline Developments Ltd

Outstanding Customer Service
First Choice Catering Spares Ltd
Maidaid-Halcyon Ltd
Mechline Developments Ltd

ceda’s Adam Mason comments on the shortlist, “These suppliers must feel a great deal of pride in being shortlisted for awards that are voted for by their customers. An excellent product is obviously important but crucially, and more and more, the sales and technical support and ongoing customer service are key for Members. I offer my sincere congratulations and indeed thanks to the shortlisted companies.”

The winners will be announced at the Gala Dinner and Awards Evening of the 2019 ceda Conference on Friday 5th April at Heythrop Park, Oxfordshire.

Hospitality Action has been confirmed as this year’s Chair-nominated charity for the ceda Conference 2019.

Behind the smiles and slick service, hospitality workers can fall upon hard times just like anybody else. Ours is a stressful industry, with long hours, high pressure environments and physically demanding work.

Injuries, mental health problems and addiction are sadly a feature of modern life in the hospitality trade. That’s where Hospitality Action steps in. They work to provide hospitality workers with financial, physical and psychological support to help them overcome adversity and get back to work as quickly as possible. They help individuals and their families stay afloat with grants to cover anything from rent payments to school uniform for their children. And for those who sadly can’t return to the industry they love, they provide ongoing support to transition them to the next stage of their lives.

For older people who have retired from the industry they provide grants to help with heating bills, home conversions or even funeral costs for loved ones. Just as importantly, they provide a lifeline to prevent loneliness and isolation and their ‘Golden Friends’ enjoy regular contact and local events to help them stay active and connected to their community.

ceda’s in-coming Chair, Derek Maher, explains the decision behind choosing Hospitality Action as this year’s nominated charity, “I’m very enthusiastic about supporting Hospitality Action this year as they are perfectly aligned with the ethics of ceda. Additionally, I have also started training for the “Le Tour de Cuisine” on 10th June which is a 100-mile cycle ride in the Cotswolds organised by Hospitality Action.”

To find out more about the work of Hospitality Action and the difference they make visit www.hospitalityaction.org.uk.

The speaker line-up for the ceda Conference 2019 is almost complete with the addition of German entrepreneur Victoria Albrecht.

Victoria is founder and CEO of Springbok AI, a data science consultancy that’s worked with enterprises including Airbus, Coca Cola and Barclays. Prior to this, she worked at yfood as Creative Director, managing over 100 conferences and consulting projects with companies like Mars, the Jamie Oliver Group, Tesco and Tyson Foods. At 24, Victoria joined the Silicon Valley-backed leading Conversational AI startup “Rasa” as the 5th employee. In 2017, she founded Springbok AI, a leading boutique Artificial Intelligence consultancy. Her team of 40 world-class academic talent applies cutting-edge research to deliver intelligent automation and insight software to global businesses like Henkel and Hogan Lovells.

At the Conference Business Day, Victoria will be talking on AI: preparing for an automated future.

ceda’s Adam Mason is delighted with Victoria’s appearance at the Conference. He said, “We always try to create a real blend of insights at the ceda Conference and Victoria’s presentation will no doubt be eye-opening and maybe even a little scary for some! This topic will impact everyone, both personally and professionally, now and in the future, and it will therefore be hugely valuable for everyone in the audience.”

To book you place at the ceda Coference 2019 or to see the full list of speakers, please visit the ceda Conference website ceda.co.uk/conference/.

“You lez”. That’s how you say it. But what on earth are we talking about?

If you’ve got vehicles going in and out of London regularly, then you hopefully already know.

Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ) is Transport For London’s latest bid to tackle air pollution, and it’s being introduced next month, on 8th April to be precise.

TFL are introducing a new charge in the Capital, and there’s a chance it could be rolled out to other UK cities in the future.

It’ll work like the current congestion charge, with the same geography to start with, charging certain vehicles who drive inside it.

The charge? £12.50 for cars, £100 for lorries per day. And it will operate 24/7!

The good news is that most petrol vehicles manufactured after 2006 will be exempt from charges. The bad? Nearly all diesel ones won’t be.

If you didn’t already know about ULEZ and you’re now getting a little hot under the collar, quickly check if your vehicle is exempt on the TFL website now.

Taking public transport, upgrading to a newer vehicle and going electric seem to be the most commonly suggested solutions to dealing with ULEZ. None of which seem to be that convenient to drivers or fleet managers.

Did you know about it? What are you going to do to combat the extra costs?

We’re delighted to announce that David McDowall and Andrew Archer have joined the growing line-up of speakers booked for this year’s ceda Conference.

David McDowall is CEO-Retail at BrewDog, which now has over 80 locations around the globe, leading the day to day operations and strategic growth of the business as it continues its rapid growth pattern. David has led the charge as BrewDog has built its UK and international retail estate and steers a passionate team who lead the business into its second decade with some audacious and ambitious plans!

More than 30 years in media, business information and events have given Andrew Archer a broad understanding of how to supply and support multiple industries. Originally in the IT media sector he has worked in multiple industries including automotive, music and national newspapers before entering the foodservice industry in 2001 with Restaurant magazine. In 2008 Andrew joined Dewberry Redpoint as Sales Director before becoming Managing Director in 2009 and acquiring the business from GlobalData PLC in October 2018.

Of the bookings, ceda’s Adam Mason said, “I am delighted that David and Andrew are joining us at Conference. David will deliver his thoughts on the current state of the pub, bar and restaurant sectors and important insights into the ground-breaking things that BrewDog are doing to make sure they are leading innovation in the UK & around the World.

“Andrew is uniquely positioned to give the audience the very latest data, information and opinion on all aspects of Public Sector catering. This is a topic we have not had at Conference for a couple of years and it will be really interesting to learn what developments are being experienced and what the future holds.”

Andrew and David join the cast of the 2019 Conference Business Day which is currently made up of entrepreneur BJ Cunningham, Peter Martin – CM & Co, Kate Nicholls – CEO UKHospitality and Martin Vander Weyer – Business Editor of The Spectator. Taking place on Friday 5th April at Heythrop Park, Oxfordshire, there are still more names to be announced to the speaker programme.

Innovation, Sustainability and Food Safety in the Age of Delivery

Wednesday March 27th, the Barbican Centre, London

Full Programme: foodonthemove.today

Hear from 50 leading food service innovators, entrepreneurs and food safety experts

Learn from many of the leading innovators behind the second wave of ‘The Digital Disruption of Food Delivery’.

• Hear from equipment manufacturers creating hot holding equipment and integrated delivery systems, keeping meals at the right temp from restaurant to home – no more cold food!
• Hear from waste reduction platforms set to transform our understanding and tolerance for waste in food delivery – waste no more!
• Hear about the private and public sector proposals to create safety certification schemes for restaurant and delivery platforms alike – licensing delivery
• Hear from systems developers as they showcase the next wave of food delivery systems – tracking production and providing up-to-date stock level reporting
• Hear from innovators on local to local delivery systems – Communities defending their high streets – systems called ‘take-back’
• Hear from logistics innovators getting it right by removing redundancy and reduplication from our last mile transport models – removing the waste
• Hear from open delivery platforms enabling the ‘collaborative capital’ model to offer the public completely new delivery models – consumer led”

Keynote Speakers include:

TRISTRAM STUART, Author of Waste: Uncovering the Global Food Scandal, Speaker, Campaigner and Expert on the Environmental and Social Impacts of Food Waste, discusses food delivery – the need for change and the priorities for transformation.

SHIRLEY CRAMER, CEO at the Royal Society for Public Health and Institute of Healthcare Management, talks about her vision of what a food delivery system looks like when it is designed to protect the public health.

JOHN BARNES, former Head of Local Delivery at the Food Standards Agency, looks at the future of food safety in the age of delivery – what should it look like? keeping the trust!”

BOOK BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE! TICKETS ARE GOING FAST…
foodonthemove.today

Conference fees include full access to the day’s events, refreshments throughout the day, a three-course lunch and a networking wine reception