Contract catering sector records five consecutive years of growth

Contract caterers have posted five years of consecutive growth, supported by recovery in workplace dining, continued demand from schools and hospitals, and clients' preference for outsourced food service over in-house provision. However, margins remain under pressure from food inflation, labour costs and rising fuel and logistics expenses, prompting operators to scrutinise every element of their cost base—including the vehicles that deliver ingredients, equipment and staff to dispersed sites.

For catering businesses running van and light-commercial fleets, fuel, maintenance and driver time represent a significant share of operating cost, particularly when servicing multiple locations daily. The shift to electric vans offers compelling whole-life savings and supports corporate clients' net-zero catering goals, but requires careful planning around route range, depot charging and upfront capital, especially for businesses reinvesting profit into new contracts and kitchen facilities.

Operators should model electric-van economics over a four- or five-year contract cycle, explore salary-sacrifice schemes to share charging infrastructure with staff, and consider operating leases that bundle maintenance, telematics and charging hardware. Getting the fleet transition right not only cuts costs but becomes a tender differentiator when bidding for corporate, university or public-sector catering contracts that now routinely include carbon and air-quality clauses.

Bluepoppy works with catering, cleaning and service logistics businesses across the South West to make fleet electrification commercially sustainable. Our multi-funder leasing panel and Fleet Cost Review take the guesswork out of EV transition, protecting cash for growth while meeting client sustainability expectations. Contact the Bluepoppy team in Bristol to discuss your fleet before your next contract renewal or tender.

Bluepoppy view: Contract catering growth depends on controlling fleet costs—electric vans offer savings and a tender edge.

Source: i-FM — summarised and written from a Bluepoppy perspective. We don’t reproduce the original article.