Cash catering is now plastic-free at The CCD

On the 21 April 2021, The Convention Centre Dublin (The CCD) removed all plastics from their cash catering food offering.

Last year, The CCD identified four ambitions to develop their sustainability strategy with a vision “to become Ireland’s most sustainable venue and a leading expert in sustainable event delivery in Europe”. One of those ambitions was to eliminate single use plastic at the venue, which was successfully launched in April, when plastic was eliminated from all cash catering food options.

While The CCD has catered for plastic-free stand-alone events in the past, this is the first time that they have launched a permanent, plastic-free cash catering food offering. The journey began with compostable cups, plates and cutlery and has now evolved into removing all plastic from the food offering at The CCD. For this to be successful, CCD Hospitality conducted a plastic audit on the different types of food that can be purchased on site. Drinks bottles were transformed into tin or cardboard and all plastic food packaging was replaced with recycling material, with hot food dishes provided on plates or cardboard boxes.

Delegates and clients attending events at The CCD can now enjoy takeaway items such as fruit in compostable pots, sandwiches in recyclable bags, drinks in recyclable tins and tea or coffee in a compostable cup.

Commenting on the transition, Alan Gallagher, Director of Event Operations said, “This is one of the many ambitions of The CCD that will have a positive impact on the world around us. Having launched our plastic-free food offering on 21 April, I’m excited to see the impact this will make to our carbon emissions when our full capacity of events returns.”

The CCD continues to investigate ways to reduce their overall Co2 emissions. After removing single use plastic from cash catering and making the switch to green electricity, there are plans to further eliminate all plastic from the venue in the coming years and to offset their carbon footprint through the planting of indigenous and diverse forestry in Co. Wicklow.

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About The CCD’s green credentials
As the world’s first carbon-neutral constructed convention centre, The Convention Centre Dublin is one of Europe's most environmentally-friendly venues. Having achieved ISO 14001 accreditation just one year after opening in 2010, The CCD is committed to long-term sustainability, consistently striving towards on-going improvement in business practices with a view to leading environmental best practice across the industry.

About The CCD
The Convention Centre Dublin was developed to provide a world-class conference venue in the heart of Ireland’s capital city. Located just 15 minutes from the airport in Dublin’s Docklands, the finance and technology hub of the city, The CCD is ideally positioned to entice the international business tourism market.

Since The CCD opened in September 2010, the team have hosted over 1,900 events. As business tourists spend money on hotels, taxis, dining out, entertainment, shopping, cultural experiences and tourist attractions, events held at The CCD help to generate significant revenue for the Irish economy.

Enquires
Suzanne McGann
Head of Marketing & Communications
The Convention Centre Dublin
Email: suzanne.mcgann@theccd.ie