Upholding Fair Labour: Why a Sustainable Food System Starts with People 💚

 

Our global community coming together to make fair labour a food business priority.

At our February Future Green Members Meetup, sustainability leaders, chefs, suppliers, and food businesses gathered to tackle a topic that still surprises people when we call it “sustainability”: Fair labour. 👩🏽‍🍳🧑🏻‍🌾

Because sustainability isn’t only about water, biodiversity, and emissions. It’s also about the people working across the food system, from seed to service to waste. If they’re not treated fairly, the system isn’t sustainable. 

We turned the spotlight onto the human side of sustainability, exploring equitable employment, dignity at work, and how food can become a pathway to opportunity.

Our guest speakers, Jo Soo Tang and Chris Lo from r é n Hong Kong, shared how their social enterprise is creating real employment pathways for disadvantaged youths, people with Down syndrome, and refugees in Hong Kong — showing what fair labour looks like in practice, not just in theory.

This wasn’t about guilt. It was about clarity, real stories, and practical ways to build a more humane industry.

 

👥 Fair Labour: What are we really talking about?

When we zoom in on hospitality and food supply chains, the challenges are well known, but still far from solved:

• Long working hours (often 12+ hours) and physically demanding conditions
  
• Job insecurity, high churn, and limited benefits
  
• Low wages and unfair pay structures
  
• Discrimination, including gender discrimination (in both developing and wealthy economies)
  
• Mental health impacts, with higher risk of anxiety, depression, and substance abuse, plus stigma around seeking help
  

We also touched on the difference between minimum wage and living wage 💡. Minimum wage is the legal baseline. A living wage is what someone needs to live with dignity in their local context. In Hong Kong, we discussed a living wage benchmark of HKD $62.80/hour as a reference point.

And importantly, fair labour connects to global frameworks too. If you’re aligning your work to the SDGs, labour is not optional, it’s central. 🌍

Empowering youth through Humanity, uplifting wellbeing through Goodness, and driving positive change through Food.

🤝 Introducing r é n: Humanity, Goodness, Food

Founded in 2023, r é n Hong Kong is a pro bono employment agency focused on supporting disadvantaged youths and people with Down syndrome into meaningful roles, many within F&B and hospitality.

r é n’s work is built around three simple anchors:

• Humanity 🤝
• Goodness 🌟
• Food 🍳

At the heart of their model is “The Thread,” a support system built around:

• Internships and employment placement
  
• Vocational training
  
• Ongoing family and community support
  
• Workshops and real-world exposure

r é n does not simply place candidates. They walk alongside them, working with families, employers, and partners to ensure long-term success.

 

🔁 Breaking The “Lackluster Cycle”

Chris described the cycle many beneficiaries face:

• Lack of awareness of opportunities
  
• Limited exposure to industry networks
  
• Insufficient training or support
  
• Resulting in difficulty accessing stable employment
  

Only around 10% of individuals with Down syndrome in Hong Kong are in full-time employment. Many work in sheltered workshops earning significantly below living wage levels.

r é n’s model reverses that cycle — creating visibility, training pathways, and employer partnerships

👨‍🍳 Brian’s Story: From Kitchen Assistant To Sous Chef

One of the most powerful moments of the session was hearing about Brian, r é n’s first beneficiary.

Brian joined a six-week internship at Moxie, part of the Arcane Collective. At the start, he didn’t know how to hold a knife. Over three years, with consistent mentorship and structured support, he progressed from kitchen assistant to sous chef-level responsibilities.

His hourly wage increased to HKD $80 per hour, well above minimum wage.

Today, Brian works full-time at a school canteen and has become r é n’s first “alumni” — voluntarily stepping away from scholarship support so it can be passed on to someone else.

As Jo shared:

That is fair labour in practice.

 

 

💼 Corporate Partnerships That Make It Work

r é n’s model thrives through collaboration. They partner with restaurant groups, hospitality brands, corporates, and school caterers to create structured employment pathways. Their revenue model combines:

• Corporate sponsorship
  
• Product sales, including their branded eggs and plush mascots Renny & Jenny
  
• Workshops and pop-ups
  
• Bespoke CSR collaborations
  

Importantly, 75% of funds raised go directly back to beneficiaries as wages, ensuring real economic impact.

For corporates looking to move beyond one-off volunteering days, r é n offers a tangible way to embed fair labour into CSR strategy. From sponsored internships to workplace placements and co-branded initiatives, businesses can actively create dignified employment opportunities while strengthening their social impact commitments.

🏆 Learning through play

We wrapped up with our classic Future Green Kahoot quiz 🎉 covering fair labour basics, wage concepts, and r é n’s mission.

Congrats again to Warton Chieng from Hakkobako for taking the win and snagging the renny and jenny plushie prize 🧸

💚 What’s Next?

If this conversation resonated with you:

• Explore partnerships with r é n Hong Kong

• Review your own hiring pathways and wage structures

• Consider how your business can move beyond compliance toward dignity

👉 Join the Future Green Membership for practical tools, expert insights, and a community driving real change
📅 Book a discovery call to explore how we can support your sustainability journey

Because sustainability is not only about the planet. It’s also about people.