CHARLOTTE, N.C. – June 29, 2021 – As the leader in foodservice, hospitality and support services, Compass Group North America is committed to creating positive change in the food system – within its industry and beyond. To help further this commitment, Compass Group has joined SSAFE, a global non-profit focused on building a safe and robust global food supply system that protects human, plant and animal health.

As a SSAFE member, Compass Group joins other global companies, including The Coca-Cola Company, McDonald’s and Nestlé, to support SSAFE’s mission and to help strengthen food safety around the world.

“Compass Group and our family of companies are passionate about the quality of food we provide and the steps we take to produce and obtain it, which is why food safety is engrained in every step of our operations,” said Tom Ford, Vice President, Food Safety and Quality Assurance, Compass Group USA. “Our relationship with SSAFE ensures that we’re partnering with the very best to help deliver real impactful change and that we’re doing our part to keep food safe – not just for our customers, but for all.”

Compass Group has a proven track record of implementing food safety policies and taking actions that prioritize social and environmental responsibility to ensure it’s serving the best products possible. Actions include:

• Building a food safety culture that informs and empowers Associates to make and serve food safely.
• Establishing a comprehensive, risk-based food safety program followed by its family of companies, built on four pillars – food safety, food quality, food fraud and food defense.
• Conducting regular 3^rd party audits to ensure its suppliers are complying with all federal, state and local regulations concerning food safety and ensuring industry best practices are being followed.
• Working with suppliers to ensure they assess their food fraud vulnerability on an annual basis.
• Making sure its suppliers and distributors follow all regulatory requirements concerning food security, including assuring facilities and warehouses are adequately protected from unauthorized access and employees are properly training in food defense.
• Partnering with suppliers who share its passion for protecting our environment and resources.

“SSAFE is very pleased to have one of the world’s leading food catering businesses join its membership,” said Adrian Sharpe, President of SSAFE. “Collaborating across the food supply chain by forming public private partnerships is at the core of what SSAFE does, and by joining SSAFE Compass helps strengthen the membership and further expand our coverage of the global food sector, ensuring that all perspectives from across the supply chain are considered in our activities.”

Learn more about SSAFE and its mission.

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About Compass Group
Compass Group is redefining the food and support services landscape with innovation and passion through the lens of what’s next. Serving premier healthcare systems, respected educational institutions, world-renowned cultural centers, popular sporting and entertainment venues, and Fortune 500 organizations the world over, Compass Group always finds a way to deliver excellence in nearly any vertical. Whether it’s serving school meals students love, high-end concessions in stadiums, or nourishing, home style meals for seniors, Compass is an industry leader. Ranked No. 1 by industry peers on Fortune’s 2020 list of World’s Most Admired Companies, Compass has also earned a spot on Forbes’ list of the Best Employers for Diversity in 2021 and is among the Top 50 Companies Changing the World according to Fortune. Learn more about the Compass experience at www.compass-usa.com.

About SSAFE
SSAFE is a global non-profit membership organization that works to protect Human, Plant & Animal Health (“One Health”) by responding quickly to emerging issues that affect the safe supply and trade of food around the world. What makes SSAFE unique is that through our collective expertise, both within our membership and through our collaborating partners, we deliver impactful solutions in a rapidly changing food environment. Our current membership includes: Cargill, The Coca-Cola Company, Compass, Danone, Givaudan, Kellogg, Kerry, Mars, McDonald’s, Nestlé and Tyson.

Find out more at www.ssafe-food.org.