5 things: Compass North America saw 17.4% revenue increase in fiscal 2023

In this edition of 5 Things, Food Management highlights five things you may have missed recently about developments affecting onsite dining.

Here’s your list for today:

 1.    Compass North America saw 17.4% revenue increase in fiscal 2023

Compass Group reported organic revenue growth of 17.4% for its North American unit in its 2023 fiscal year ending Sept. 30, citing "new business wins benefiting from significant levels of first-time outsourcing, strong retention rates at 96.9%, appropriate levels of pricing and like-for-like volume growth underpinned by the scaling of digital capabilities." It noted that "growth was broad-based across all sectors," with Business & Industry benefitting from double-digit net new business growth and favorable like-for-like volume growth as employees continued to return to the office, Sports & Leisure seeing high participation rates and per capita spend and the Education and Healthcare & Senior Living businesses delivering strong growth from net new business, like-for-like volume growth and pricing.

Read more: Full-year results announcement for the year ended 30 September 2023

 2.    College dining hall student workers unionize

Student dining hall workers at Smith College in Massachusetts have unionized in response to "the mistreatment of student dining workers specifically relating to pay, training, safety concerns and management," according to their press release. The new United Smith Student Workers (USSW) is associated with the Office of Professional Employees International Union which “represents approximately 88,000 workers in the public and private sectors across the US,” according to the press release, and aims to protect undergraduate student employees from the dining hall, campus cafes and catering services. However, before bargaining can begin, the college must officially recognize the union.

Related:5 things: Aramark launches video series to promote K-8 nutrition

Read more: Smith College student dining hall workers unionize

 3.    VA Medical Center partners with local organizations to give vets Thanksgiving meal

The VA Medical Center in North Charleston, S.C. is partnering with area organizations to provide hundreds of veteran and active-duty families with healthy Thanksgiving meals. “It’s the VA Medical Center’s mission to serve veterans and what better time to do that than on Thanksgiving,” said Margaret Bradbury, chief of nutrition for the VA Medical Center.

Read more: VA Medical Center partners with other organizations to feed veterans for Thanksgiving

 4.    UCLA introduces pilot meal plan for apartment dwelling students

Related:5 tech things: Sodexo plans healthcare robot patient support pilot for 2024

UCLA Dining has announced that it will pilot a meal plan for students living in its University Apartments North complex that will offer 35 meals to a limited number of undergraduate students for the rest of the quarter at the cost of a $525 up-front payment. It says that the meal plan can be used for all dining locations for breakfast but only for takeout dining halls and food trucks during lunch, dinner, and late-night meals.

Read more: UCLA Dining to offer pilot meal plan for select off-campus students

 5.    NY Yankees, Legends Hospitality hold early Thanksgiving meal for Bronx families

An early Thanksgiving dinner for hundreds of food-insecure families was held on Nov. 17 at the Rev. T. Wendell Foster Park and Rec Center in the Bronx by Major League Baseball's New York Yankees,  Yankees concessions provider Legends Hospitality and Scan-Harbor, which operates at the park and rec center to provide afterschool programming for area kids.  The menu consisted of Thanksgiving classics ranging from turkeys to sweet potatoes, mac and cheese and green beans.

Read more: Yankees host feast for hundreds of families getting Thanksgiving head start

Bonus: Top 13 arts/entertainment food service stories of 2023

Contact Mike Buzalka at [email protected]