The corporate focus in Italy has had to adapt to a more structural spread of Smart Working and the changing needs of employees. On the one hand, they are increasingly concerned about their well-being and sustainability, even when it comes to the food they consume, and on the other hand they want more personalization of the restaurant offer. These elements have affected, and continue to affect, even lunch breaks and breaks, leading companies to rethink spaces and dynamics.
Corporate focus in Italy: the current situation
All this takes place in a global scenario in which the collective focus – a key sector of the Italian economy, with related activities of 6.5 billion euros and the preparation of approximately 1.5 billion meals served annually to 95,000 workers (source: Oricon – Collective and Nutritional Catering Observatory) – must deal with the general increase in costs.
Companies that want to offer benefits to employees must therefore reconsider the lunch break, both to respond to employee requests and to make spending more efficient, while also taking into account another aspect: corporate social responsibility. In fact, it is the duty of companies to guarantee a balanced meal and meet the needs of employees both from a nutritional point of view and to protect the quality of life.
Lunch break: what workers are looking for
The growing awareness of the importance of food and nutrition to the well-being of the individual and the community quality of corporate welfare are at the heart of employee priorities. That is why the demand for innovative solutions is needed.
Facts that companies should take into account, since in Italy 64.5% of people say that lunch is the main meal of the day (source: Statista) and that a good percentage of Italians (51%) take care to reduce, for example , using meat for environmental reasons and for eating alternatives usually recommended in dietary guidelines, such as pulses (84%), eggs (82%), fish (77%), cheese (72%) and dried nuts (69%) ) (source: Crea).
In this context, also anticipating the trends that will consolidate over the years, Elior, during the period of Covid-19, developed the Project iColti in Tavola.
“For Elior, innovation means predicting the future of focus, developing the best solutions for collective focus – he says Roberta Dilernia, Director of Human Resources Elior – always focusing on the needs of the individual, to combine them with those of the organization to which he belongs and thus help it to be more productive and satisfied. Where there is no company catering system, workers demand it: it is now considered a necessary provision, which has climbed the ladder of people’s priorities, more than tickets. The meal stamp, in fact, has a value that loses purchasing power, especially in this particular historical period characterized by inflation, while corporate catering services they have minimal cost impact on the employee, moreover optimizing time and improving quality of lifebecause the employee does not have to worry about preparing his lunch.”
Who is who
Roberta Dilernia
Director of Human Resources Elior
Technology, digitization and flexibility to improve the company canteen
The world of collective catering, therefore, is called upon to respond to these new needs. This is why service models are evolving towards greater flexibility and quality.
“In this context – adds Dilernia – production and conservation techniques based on the use of ATP technology are introduced. packaging method that does not alter the nutritional characteristics and taste of food, but extends its life. And not only that, but also technology solutions like Food360 and Urban360 for secure access to meals 24/7, ideal for companies of all sizes, perhaps with staff organized in evening or night shifts, in addition to digitizing processes for up-to-date and updated personalized meal selection, with orders through the app. Alongside innovating our food offering, we are also working to offer more and more flexible solutions: in a panorama like the Italian one, made up of SMEs, that increasingly choose to offer welfare solutions to their employees, we have developed an offer for smaller companies that want to meet the needs of employees without sacrificing taste. The new solutions we have developed, thanks to technology and process innovations, make it so financially viable service even for companies with a small number of employees. But they are also able to meet the demands of large organizations that have decentralized local offices or that have maintained hybrid working.”
With ATP “complete” solutions for everyone
In addition to classic catering solutions, thanks to new cooking and packaging technologies for meals and the support of technology and digitalization, it is possible to activate various synergies to ensure the well-being of workers and the environment.
“The modified atmosphere – explains Dilernia – allows you to extend the life of a dish by about a week, with significant implications in terms of sustainability and the fight against food waste, thanks to the possibility of better optimization of stocks and food used. Using ATP we launched the iColti In Tavola Project, the new range of safe, flexible, complete and balanced meals for a quick or more traditional lunch break. This series, thanks to the wide variety of recipes, there are almost 250 and ingredients, is offered for very high level of customization, ideal for diets of all needs. In particular, we have prepared various product lines, suitable to satisfy everyone’s needs, from traditional dishes, to proposals related to well-being and sports nutrition, to the needs of specific nutritional regimes such as vegan diets or those indicated for intolerances.
The project allows companies to offer welfare solutions to employees, who are offered dishes suitable for all nutritional needs, whether they are in the office or even through the use of fully automated smart lockersboth in Smart Working.
For all nutrition and sustainability conscious workers, the dishes also contain nutritional values and CO information2 was issued.