How BEBA and Soil Association certifications are shaping the future of food at Bristol’s biggest festival

If you’re a caterer, now’s the time to act – get accredited with the Bristol Eating Better Award (BEBA) or the Soil Association’s Organic Served Here and help drive healthier, more sustainable festival food. If you’re organising an event, follow Bristol Harbour Festival’s example and use certification to raise standards without losing flavour or viability.

Hear from Charlotte Jackson, sustainability coordinator in the festival industry and Comms & Engagement Coordinator at Bristol Good Food 2030, in the latest Bristol Good Food story.

As the dust settles on festival season and I welcome in some cosier weekends, I’ve been reflecting on the vital role food plays at events. It fuels the festivities, brings us together and, when chosen with care, can move us closer to a future that is just, sustainable, resilient, and flourishing for everyone.

Bristol Harbour Festival is the city’s biggest event, a free and family-friendly celebration that welcomes more than 200,000 visitors each year. With that scale of appetite, the big question is: how do you make sure food is not only delicious and diverse, but also healthy, ethical, and sustainable?

Embedding sustainability into Harbour Fest

In 2023, Bristol City Council Events Team updated the Harbour Festival tender and contract to require the appointed organiser, Proud Events, to prioritise traders accredited by either the free Bristol Eating Better Award (BEBA) or the Soil Association’s Organic Served Here accreditation. This seemingly small contractual change has had a huge impact, moving sustainability from a “nice to have” into the backbone of food at the event. The accreditors and event organisers have also worked collaboratively to engage and support non-certified traders to apply and meet the standards.

What do the certifications mean?

The Bristol Eating Better Award (BEBA) recognises businesses that make it easier for people to eat well. Caterers who hold the award commit to offering healthier options, reducing sugar, salt and unhealthy fats, serving sustainable meat/fish, and ensuring menus are inclusive with vegetarian and vegan choices. They also take steps to cut waste and source food responsibly. For festival-goers, it’s a signal that what’s on offer has been thought through with health and sustainability in mind.

Alongside this, some traders hold the Soil Association’s Organic Served Here award, which recognises caterers that use certified organic ingredients in their cooking. The more organic produce they serve, the higher their star rating. It’s a simple way to know that a meal is packed with ingredients grown without harmful pesticides, with higher welfare standards for animals, and with care for nature.

Progress and challenges

Bristol Harbour Fest’s ambition is to have 100% certified food traders by 2030. That’s no small feat when you need to supply over 40 food pitches across multiple sites that cater for more than 200,000 people. Certified traders have risen from 5% in 2023 to 30% in 2024 and 2025. Work is already underway for 2026 with several new traders aiming to return with certification in hand.

As with many sustainability shifts, the journey isn’t linear. The early wins come quickly, while deeper systemic change takes time. There are also challenges unique to a free festival of this size: catering must remain affordable for traders paying flat pitch fees, and options must be broad enough to appeal to all audiences while serving food at speed.

Certified traders like The Little Grey Horsebox, Banana Skin, and Madalleh Bakes are bringing originality and plant-rich menus to the table. Alongside them, other local favourites such as Itadeli and Ceylon and Beyond add variety, with organisers carefully curating a balance across sites, from family-friendly options at College Green to a more adventurous mix at Narrow Quay. Despite its scale, Harbour Fest has proved that healthier, more sustainable catering is possible.

Where next?

If you’re a caterer looking to apply, click to find out more about the free Bristol Eating Better Business Award and the Soil Association Organic Served Here Award. If you’re planning an event, finding accredited caterers is simple; just head to the BEBA website and toggle to “event caterer.”

The work continues. Each year, more traders are encouraged to raise their game, and the city edges closer to its 2030 target. For other large events hesitant about the risks, Bristol Harbour Festival offers an encouraging case study: you can use already established certifications to cater sustainably without compromising on flavour, variety, or viability.

Read stories about Bristol Eating Better Award winners Spoko, Katherine & Griffiths House, Little Grey Horsebox, Momo Bar and Loki Poké.  

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