Workplace services provider Sodexo was named Ireland’s top Site Contract Caterer for 2021 at the annual Gold Medal Awards for Excellence in Catering.
It won the award in respect of its catering operation at Eli Lilly and Company in Kinsale, Cork. At the recent gala ceremony in Kilkenny, Billy Perkins, client relationship director, and Brenda Flaherty, client relationship manager, accepted the award from Emma Conlon of Excel Recruitment, the category sponsor.
The Gold Medal Awards for Excellence in Catering, organised by Hotel & Catering Review magazine, were established in 1988.
David Fox, managing director, Sodexo Ireland, said: “We’re delighted and extremely proud to be declared Ireland’s top site contract caterer. On behalf of the company, congratulations to our excellent team at Lilly KInsale, led by contract manager Edwin Fleming, soft services manager, Noel Kenny, business manager John Mahoney and head chef Ian Tabone. The Award is testament to the top class performance of the team on-site and it’s a most deserved win!”
Sodexo’s team at Lilly Kinsale interweaves plant-based dishes as part of Sodexo’s commitment to increasing the number of vegetarian and vegan dishes to over one-third. It also incorporates dishes into its serving offer that feature fifty of the world’s sustainable ingredient profiles.
Feedback from the judges highlighted the “Attention to customer requirements… 30% of dishes served are vegan… sustainability practices… allergen training for all staff pre-service daily… all food labelled with ingredients, allergens and calorific values…integrated use of scanners to monitor numbers in dining areas at all times… staff informed, efficient, working as a team – great display of good leadership!”
Brid Dilworth, Facilities Management and Administration at Lilly Kinsale, said: “The past 10 years has been a time of enormous change at Lilly Kinsale and more recently in the past 20 months the challenge of Covid. We could not have met those changes without the support and commitment of the Sodexo team. All challenges have been met by a complete Sodexo team effort and Sodexo employees go the extra mile to deliver. Overall the spirit of the team and team work manifests itself in the strength of the partnership between Sodexo and Lilly at Kinsale.”
