Our community coming together to make access to nutrition a food business priority.

Food sustainability conversations often focus on carbon emissions, food waste, and supply chains. 

But another important question is emerging in the food system: Do people actually have access to healthy, nutritious food and the knowledge to choose it?

That was the focus of our March Future Green Members Monthly Meetup last week, hosted at FEAST, EAST Hotel — the vibrant restaurant space inside EAST Hong Kong that brings together food, community, and conversation.

Gathering at FEAST created the perfect setting for a discussion about the future of dining. Surrounded by chefs, hospitality professionals, and sustainability leaders, members explored how restaurants and food businesses can help make healthier choices easier to understand and access.

The session began with a big-picture look at what “access to nutrition” really means. According to the FAO definition, access to nutrition is not simply about food being available. It includes availability, affordability, and nutrition knowledge, ensuring that people can obtain and understand healthy food choices.

Even in cities like Hong Kong, where food is abundant, there can still be significant gaps in access to nutritious diets. From cost barriers to limited transparency around food composition, many consumers lack the information needed to make informed decisions about what they eat.

🥗Healthy Diets for People and the Planet

The discussion also explored how healthy and sustainable diets shape the future of food systems.

One framework highlighted was the Planetary Health Diet, developed by a global group of scientists (EAT LANCET). It encourages eating more vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and nuts, while reducing red meat and highly processed foods.

These dietary shifts benefit both human health and the environment, especially as the global food system contributes roughly a third of greenhouse gas emissions.

Participants also learned about Future 50 Foods, a list of nutritious ingredients that grow well in changing climates. Foods like lentils, seaweed, chickpeas, teff and quinoa help diversify diets while supporting more resilient agriculture.

Together, these ideas show that improving access to nutrition is not only a public health issue. It is also a key part of building a more sustainable food system.

Conversations, connections, and new ideas on making nutrition more accessible.

🍽️Nutrition Transparency in Restaurants

Our meetup’s guest speaker, Jojo Kwok Ka Po, Co-founder of Body Nova and Dinewell AI, shared insights into how nutrition transparency could reshape dining experiences.

In Hong Kong, nutrition labelling is mandatory for packaged food products, but most restaurant dishes still do not provide this information.

Body Nova is working to bring nutrition labelling to restaurant menus, providing information such as calories and key macronutrients including carbohydrates, protein, fat, and dietary fibre.

Their work reflects a broader shift in consumer expectations.

Health-conscious diners are increasingly looking for restaurants that support their wellbeing, not just their taste preferences.

Through their platform Dinewell AI, diners can explore nutrition information across restaurant menus and filter dishes based on dietary preferences or allergens.

Jojo Kwok Ka Po, Co-founder of Body Nova, sharing insights on bringing nutrition transparency into real-world dining.

🔄 From Commodity to Performance Fuel

One of the most compelling ideas discussed during the session was how restaurants might rethink the way they position food.

Jojo suggested that many restaurants still treat food as a basic commodity — something comparable to fuel.

In other words, restaurants can shift their messaging from simply serving meals to offering food that supports performance, wellbeing, and mental clarity.

For example, a healthy lunch might not just be a salad. It could be positioned as the fuel that helps someone stay focused during an afternoon meeting.

This approach reflects a growing market of health-conscious diners who are willing to spend more on food that supports their lifestyle and wellbeing.

📊 The Role of Data in Changing Food Choices

During the Q&A session, participants explored how nutrition data might influence both diners and chefs.

Jojo shared that early insights from Body Nova’s work already show shifts in consumer behaviour.

Some chefs have also started adjusting recipes after seeing the nutritional breakdown of their dishes. In some cases, this has led to greater use of seasonal ingredients or healthier cooking methods.

Over time, tools like these could encourage a broader shift toward healthier restaurant menus without compromising flavour or creativity.

 

🎉 Kahoot Quiz: Learning Through Play

We wrapped up the session with a fun Kahoot quiz, covering topics like access to nutrition, the Planetary Health Diet, Future 50 Foods, and Jojo’s work on nutrition transparency.

Congratulations to Eddie Pang from EAST Hotel, who won the Nutrition Labelling Trial Service for six dishes, valued at HK$8,280.

 

💚 What’s Next?

If this conversation on Access to Nutrition resonated with you:

• Explore how nutrition labelling and transparency could enhance the dining experience and customer trust
  • Connect with Body Nova to learn how their nutrition labelling and wellness consultancy can support your restaurant or hospitality business

👉 Join the Future Green Membership for practical tools, expert insights, and a community driving real change in food and hospitality
📅 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’s health and wellbeing.

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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 journey from internship to full-time chef shows what fair labour looks like in practice.

👨‍🍳 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.

 

From kitchens to community spaces, r é n creates pathways to fair work and belonging.

 

💼 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.