IACC Meeting Room of the Future June 2023 Report

Table 3: Opinion on food and beverage (1=strongly disagree, 10=strongly agree) – by region

Australia- Asia- Pacific

The Americas

Europe

Africa

Food & Beverage is a key part of the meeting design and experience. There is a benefit in venues offering meeting and conference delegates continuous refreshment break service throughout different parts of the day versus set times for delivery. Food offerings and corresponding presentation should be offered based on the time of the year (seasonality) and the venue’s geographic location. In the past three years there has been an increase in the number of requests to accommodate allergies, personal eating plans or preferences. There is a link between food types served at different stages of the event day and delegate energy levels. Health and well-being is a primary initiative of my organization. Nutritional information should be visible or available. My organization(s) offers evening activities, beyond simply bar service after dinner. The topic, tone or message influences menu planning. Example: bad news = comfort food.

8.0

8.0

8.3

7.9

8.5

8.0

7.8

7.4

4.0

8.8

7.7

7.3

8.0

8.5

8.1

7.2

7.7

7.8

8.0

7.0

4.5

9.0

7.3

6.8

8.5

8.0

8.3

6.6

5.3

7.6

6.8

6.5

6.5

6.6

6.7

5.7

Food is necessary and considered “fuel” only.

7.0

4.3

6.3

4.7

The vast majority of respondents are confident a venue will accommodate dietary requirements when asked in advance. However, the impact of a venue’s food sustainability credentials on venue selection is more divided. 43 percent of respondents consider a venue’s credentials when it comes to sourcing sustainable foods. When looking at regional differences however, this jumps to 75 percent among European respondents, and falls to 39 percent for the Americas.

Planners have confidence in venues to accommodate dietary requirements, yet they say menus are not

flexible, are unhealthy, and lack of options for dietary requirements including vegetarians/ vegan. This is an opportunity for venues to stand out from their competition and meets these challenges.” —Tracy Stuckrath, Founder & Chief Connecting Officer, thrive! Meetings & Events

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