Background

In recent years, Hong Kong has been actively positioning itself as an international hub for green technology and finance. In the 2023 Policy Address delivered by Chief Executive Mr. John Lee, Hong Kong has firmly established its commitment to addressing climate change. The city has set ambitious targets to reduce total carbon emissions by 50% from the 2005 level and achieve carbon neutrality before 2050.

Being a credible industry association in Catering and Retail industries respectively, Smart Catering Association (SCA) and Retail Technology Industry Association (RTIA) share one same mission, that is, to promote the use of innovation and technology to improve the operations and share the best practices to their members and the two industries as a whole. As sustainability has become a critical topic for both industries, SCA and RTIA spot the opportunity to bring in innovation and technology to enhance sustainability and operational efficiency at the same time. Our Co-Organizer, inXpire, which is a ESG project consultancy striving to provide ESG solutions to its clients and the community, add further value on the framework and project management of the Awards.

The Awards aim to recognize and celebrate outstanding achievements in the field of environmental sustainability within the restaurant industry and retail industry in Hong Kong. The reason of having these two industries together for the Awards is that, firstly together they have over 55,000 outlets in Hong Kong and secondly, these two industries are the focus of many recent environment protection initiatives by the Government such as Regulation on Disposable Plastic Products and Municipal Solid Waste Charging. We aim to promote green development and carbon neutrality initiatives to address the urgent challenges posed by climate change and sustainable development.

Through a combination of expert judging panels and a robust qualitative and quantitative judging system, these awards will identify and honor restaurants and retailers that have demonstrated exceptional performance in sustainable practices, green initiatives, and efforts towards achieving carbon neutrality.

By shining a spotlight on these exemplary establishments, the Sustainable Restaurant & Retailer Awards will serve as a catalyst for positive change and inspire others within the industry to adopt sustainable practices, as well as position the city as a leader in sustainability in the Asia-Pacific region.

Objectives

Supporting Organizations