Businesses hop in on the latest food trends to augment their marketing and branding all year round. But often, the hospitality industry forgets to celebrate one of the most important global events—World Food Day.
This year, the big day will be celebrated on October 16 with the theme, “Safe Food Today for a Healthy Tomorrow.”
You can use this day to emphasize the importance of having access to safe, nutritious food for the long-term benefit of the people, the environment, and the economy.
But you might wonder how you’re going to do it.
Simple actions such as featuring a healthy menu, using biodegradable packaging, supporting local farmers, or adapting technology for faster and safer transactions like a QR code menu can contribute to this movement.
And we’re here to provide comprehensive ideas on how you can contribute to this annual event.
History check: What is World Food Day?
In 1945, the Food Agriculture Organization (FAO), a specialized agency of the United Nations, established the World Food Day.
But it was not officially recognized until November 1979 at the 20th FAO conference. Since then, it has been celebrated by 150 countries, allowing it to gain recognition from the United Nations.
The very purpose of establishing this celebration is to promote the idea of feeding the world and eliminating poverty in rural areas.
It is celebrated yearly by highlighting several aspects of food security, agriculture, biodiversity, fishing communities, and climate change.
These aspects are reflected in the World Food Day 2024 theme as it focuses on safely producing and consuming food.
9 World Food Day celebration ideas
Feature a safe and sustainable menu
A safe and sustainable menu is not just about offering customers appetizing dishes.
It also ensures that every ingredient you use reflects your business’s commitment to providing healthier and cleaner meals.
To achieve this, prioritize sourcing ingredients from local suppliers. By getting produce, meats, and other products you use from nearby farmers and producers, you can contribute to the local agricultural economy and reduce the carbon footprint associated with transportation.
This strategy highlights the importance of food safety as it helps you track your ingredients from farm to table.
Host a “Know Your Farmer” event for World Food Day
Organize an event where you can highlight your local farmers.
Plan the event program to include activities your customers can enjoy and learn.
You can do farm tours, product demonstrations, and Q&A sessions so the attendees can pick the brains of the folks who tend the land and raise the animals.
This creates a sense of community among guests and your restaurant, boosting the brand image of your business that emphasizes your immense support of local products and the economy in your area.
It will also help you to reach a wider audience base through your customers’ self-promotion on their personal social media platforms or even just by sharing their experiences with their family and friends.
Conduct interactive food safety workshops
Transform your restaurant into a vibrant learning hub for a day by offering interactive workshops about food and restaurant safety to your guests.
As you plan your workshops, envision a hands-on approach that engages your participants on multiple levels.
Interactive demonstrations and practical exercises are the best way to do that, from proper handwashing techniques to safe food storage practices.
This creates an immersive experience for them where learning isn’t passive but rather active and engaging.
At the end of the session, encourage your participants to share their experiences on their social media platforms, contributing to your engagement and online visibility.
Donate healthy meals
As a restaurant owner, contributing to this celebration by donating healthy meals to those in need is an incredible effort to give back to your community.
You can extend a helping hand to individuals and families facing food insecurity while also spreading a message of compassion and solidarity.
To do this, you can collaborate with your chosen organization in your area that shares your value in serving those in need. It could be a local food bank, shelter, or community center.
Plan your donation campaign together with your partner organization, such as giving out premade meals, fresh raw ingredients or produce, and other necessities for your recipients.
Promote this initiative using your restaurant’s website, social media channels, and in-house signages to spread the word so you can rally support for the cause and inspire your customers to join.
Host a food safety quiz
Take this as your opportunity to educate staff and customers in a fun and interactive way.
It’s a strategic way for you to have a collaborative activity with your staff and customers during your celebration, making them feel that sense of belongingness.
Here, you can discuss key concepts about food safety handling, identify areas for improvement, and promote a culture of safe dining in your restaurant.
Don’t forget to reward the participants with prizes or incentives like gift cards, coupons, or discounts.
With this, they can be effective advocates of the World Food Day causes and also efficient channels in promoting your restaurant across multiple platforms.
Offer discounts for safe food practices using a digital restaurant menu QR code
Integrating a discount program into a digital menu QR code is an innovative way to encourage your customers to prioritize food safety while dining in your restaurant.
This QR code should link to your digital menu, which serves as a central hub for customers to learn about the discounts available for practicing safe food habits.
Ensure that you display these QR codes on table tents, counters, or signboards so it’s easily accessible.
It’s important that you clearly specify the criteria for qualifying for the discounts.
Whether they bring sustainable containers for takeout or participate in your games, you want to ensure your guests understand how to receive the discount.
Pro tip: When offering discounts, have various promos for everyone. It could be a percentage off the original meal price, a complimentary beverage, or a special promo on selected menu items.
Promote sustainable packaging
Adopt sustainable packaging options in your business to show customers your advocacy for protecting the environment.
This means choosing packaging materials that are biodegradable, compostable, or made from recycled materials whenever possible.
This way, you’ll be able to impart knowledge to your guests about its benefits and how they can support your efforts.
This could include displaying signage in your restaurant explaining sustainability, highlighting specific packaging choices you’ve made, and providing information about how the customers can dispose of the packaging responsibly.
Another effective way to promote sustainable packaging is to make it your default option for takeout and delivery orders.
By automatically providing eco-friendly packing unless otherwise requested, you can encourage your guests to make environmentally conscious choices without having to think twice.
Partner with health organizations in your locality
Fostering a partnership with your local health organizations is definitely a great addition to your celebration and initiative to promote healthy eating habits and overall well-being within your community.
Above all, both of you can benefit from cross-promoting each other to a higher market reach and more enhanced branding image.
This might include local hospitals, community health centers, public health departments, or non-profit agencies focused on nutrition and wellness.
You can then co-organize educational events and workshops on topics related to nutrition, healthy eating, and even proper food handling practices.
In addition to that, you can collaborate with them to develop and promote healthier menu options. This could involve consulting with nutrition experts to create dishes that are lower in calories, sodium, and unhealthy fats without compromising their flavor.
Engage on your social media
What’s a better way to connect with a wider audience than having your social media do the work for you?
To kick off your social media campaign for this Food Day celebration, make resonating content that can attract your target audience.
This might include visually appealing graphics, captivating videos, or informative posts that highlight the significance of the theme.
Sharing behind-the-scenes information about your food preparations is also a smart material to add to your social media postings, where your audience can see a glimpse of your kitchen operations and how diligent your business is in following safety protocols while preparing food.
This is also an effective way for you to encourage other customer base to pay a visit to your restaurant.
In fact, recent restaurant social media statistics indicated that 50% of diners claim that social media can influence their restaurant choices. Roughly 22% of customers are inspired to revisit a restaurant due to its social media presence.
Social media for restaurants can also be a tool for education, where you can share tips for safe food practices, conduct polls related to World Food Day, or provide healthy recipes they can recreate at home.
How can a QR code menu software contribute to this celebration?
Restaurant technology like MENU TIGER can play a huge part in your celebration.
You must realize that food safety processes do not just involve how meticulous you are in preparing your dishes but also involve safe interaction between your staff and customers when ordering and paying for these items.
To fully grasp what we mean by this, here’s how MENU TIGER can contribute significantly to your restaurant’s overall services:
Offers a contactless dining experience for your customers
A QR code menu software helps you provide touch-free dining that reduces the need for your guests to fumble through sheets of paper menu that could harbor germs and bacteria.
By allowing your customers to access your offering directly from their smartphones, you can promote a safer eating environment for them that minimizes the risk of transmitting illnesses.
Highlights safety measures
Within your digital menu, you can put information about safety measures and protocols in place to ensure food safety and hygiene.
This could include details about your kitchen sanitation practices, especially the food handling processes you do while preparing each dish.
With this level of transparency, you’re already instilling confidence in your customers and reassuring them of the safety and cleanliness of your food.
Promote healthy menu options on World Food Day
You can prominently feature healthy menu choices that align with the theme.
This could include food items made with fresh, locally sourced ingredients, low in unhealthy fats and sodium, and rich in nutrients.
Since this technology is highly customizable, it lets customers customize their orders, adding complimentary items that suit their preferences and dietary restrictions to their main dishes.
Disseminates educational content
You can send out information kits using this food ordering software through your restaurant newsletter to your patrons that give additional knowledge about the importance of practicing safe food handling and the impact of their food choices on their health and environment.
This can contain articles, videos, or infographics that are helpful for them when they are also cooking at home.
Let’s have ‘Safe food today for a healthy tomorrow’ with a QR code menu
Celebrate this World Food Day by joining the vision of providing long-term benefits for people by preparing healthy meals, saving the planet through sustainable practices in your business, and contributing to the economy with your immense support of local farmers and producers.
To assist you in effectively smoothening the processes of your efforts, it is best to have a technology designed solely for that.
With QR code menu software like MENU TIGER, rest assured that these initiatives will reflect in your overall restaurant operations and services.
So, gear up, visit the website, and create an account for safer and healthier dishes that bring positive change.
