What James Beard Foundations' Climate Impact Survey Results Tell Us About Rising Food Costs in Event Planning
Are you an event planner, meeting planner or event host who is noticing an uptick in catering, food and beverage pricing? Well, you are not alone.
I was scrolling through Instagram a few weeks ago when I noticed the James Beard Foundation had conducted a survey of chefs on the effects of Climate Change on being able to deliver to their clients. Not surprisingly, they shared stories of temporary shut-downs due to weather-related disasters; increased prices on the items that event planners creating menus want the most; and less ability to source ingredients, among other consequences.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for food and beverages are 93.73% higher in 2024 versus 2000 (a $18.75 difference in value).
In the year 2000, there was an average of 6.7 Billion-dollar natural disasters. In 2023, that number rose to 28. So, if trends continue, what can we expect to see, based on the results of the survey?
More long-business closures due to extreme weather, like hurricanes, extreme heat, wildfires, and mass fish die-offs, like the one that recently affected Greece’s high tourism season.
Increased prices for, or the inability to find, common ingredients like butter, eggs, olive oil, milk, produce, and gluten free flour.
Common culinary staples being completely out of reach for some chefs due to pricing or lack of availability, such as crab, salmon, and coffee.
Note: All come from James Beard Foundation’s Instagram Page, which I’ve linked below.
To hear more about James Beard Foundation’s initiative, Climate Change for Restaurant Survival, and take the survey, follow the link attached or find them on Instagram for updates on the results and how you can get involved.
What’s more, statistics show an average of 25% higher cost for hosting an event since 2019. I’ve listed once specific source here below, but articles focused specifically on weddings and the industry as a whole say the same thing.
From a human perspective, we can understand that our urge to connect with one another only grew during the pandemic. Lockdowns forced us to be disconnected, and occasions were one of the things we missed most–from holidays, to birthday parties, and yes, conferences and events.
From a business perspective, we also understand that restaurants, hoteliers, catering companies, audio/visual companies, and others in our industry took the largest hit in most cases. This study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison shows that hotels lost a collective $111.8Billion in room revenue alone in 2021 and 2022..
The narrative that I hear sometimes, however, is that price increases are due to inflated profit margins on the hospitality industry’s part. As an event professional, I hope to continue to do my best to educate myself and my clients on the reasons behind price increases, and manage expectations when deciding on menus and budgets.
As a human being, I will always be committed to leaving this planet a better place than I found it, and to helping other human beings connect with one another and causes that are bigger than us all.