The Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA) was founded in 2008 by Simon Heppner, Giles Gibbons, Mark Sainsbury and Henry Dimbleby, with a vision of creating a clear intersection between the sustainable food movement and the hospitality industry. With a group of 50 founding restaurants, The SRA set out to create a robust framework for what made a restaurant “good”, clearly promote best practice across the industry and inspire healthy competition to drive progressive action.
Initially known as the Food Made Good Rating, the Food Made Good Sustainability Standard was launched in 2010. Since then, it has been used to assess and certify the sustainability of more than 15,000 sites globally. What started as a conversation between a few restaurants in London quickly grew to reach all corners of foodservice—from high end to high street, from street food staples to workplace and university canteens.
Based on this Standard, The SRA acts as sustainability partner and judge for many of the best-known industry awards, including The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, the San Pellegrino Young Chef Awards and the UK’s National Restaurant Awards.
According to SRA, it continues to evolve, grow and expand its scope; today, the offering also includes bespoke consultancy projects, partnership programs with businesses that have the power to support its mission, and a busy calendar of education and networking sessions.
In 2023, SRA launched a new and improved version of the Food Made Good Standard. With updates including a globally accessible and globally applicable framework and question set, as well as a brand-new user-friendly online platform, the rating reflects the needs and abilities of the global hospitality sector and the industry’s current sustainability footprint.
The Green Restaurant Association is another valuable resource for those interested in greening up a foodservice space.
