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saladplate

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  • 2 min

Layan Life By Anantara Offers A Forward-Thinking ‘Medi-Wellness’ Concept In A Luxury Hotel Setting

🏥 In Thailand, wellness travel is evolving beyond massages to holistic wellness and longevity. The global market for longevity is seen as infinite with a world population at 8 million. Spas like The Four Seasons Singapore and RakXa Bangkok are incorporating medical elements into their services. Anantara Hotels & Resorts' Layan Life combines traditional Thai medicine with modern medical offerings and features a health food restaurant, and facilities for sports and cultural activities. Layan Life's Wellness Manager, Sasithorn Charmorchad, indicates Minor Hotels' ongoing investment in wellness.
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  • 2 min

Fighting Food Waste and Winning Fans – Meet Gusto’s Upcycled Fruit Snacks

🍍 Gusto Snacks, valued at £1.2m and available in major UK outlets like Selfridges and WHSmith, now sells in Germany via Amazon. The company, founded in 2018 and launched in 2020 by Guiseppe Baidoo and Claudio Owusu, turns imperfect fruit into vegan, gluten-free, high-fiber, low-calorie snacks with no added sugar. Their 20g bags contain less than 80 calories. With 5 flavors, they plan new products by 2025. Guerrilla marketing and a Selfridges collaboration in 2021 enhanced their visibility.
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  • 1 min

The Future of Food: Fighting Fraud, Waste and Contamination with Blockchain Technology

🛒 The Growhub's Chief Innovative Officer, Aaron Loo, advocates for blockchain and AI-powered analytics to forecast demand and align supply, minimizing over-production and waste by tracking food distribution in real-time. World Health Organization statistics reveal nearly 1 in 10 people globally are affected by food-borne illnesses annually, resulting in approximately 420,000 deaths. Blockchain enhances traceability for quicker contamination source identification and food recalls, mitigating health risks.
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Hold the Alcohol: Three Michelin Restaurants in Asia Redefining the Non-Alcoholic Temperance Pairing

🍷 Located in Singapore's Flower Dome, Marguerite offers a non-alcoholic temperance option that mimics traditional wine pairings. Chef-Patron Michael Wilson oversees the creation of these beverages, requiring 3 days to 2 weeks for juice clarification and fermentation. Examples include a Chardonnay-like beverage made from caramelised Gala apples, oak chips, and verjuice to pair with Patagonian toothfish, and a spicy Cabernet-style juice for Challans duck. Non-alcoholic Sauvignon Blanc is made from Granny Smith apple juice, shiso, hay infusion, and filtering, complementing lettuce gazpacho with king crab. These Michelin-starred establishments showcase non-alcoholic pairings as an integral part of fine dining's future.
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  • 2 min

How Booking.com’s Travel Proud initiative is making hospitality more inclusive and welcoming for LGBTQ+ travellers

🌈 In 2024, Booking.com revealed that over half of LGBTQ+ travelers experienced discrimination, and 56% feel more insecure while traveling. Despite this, 67% value authenticity during their journeys. Travel Proud, launched in 2021 and available in 11 languages including Japanese and Thai, provides inclusive hospitality training in partnership with HospitableMe. The program aims to address the specific challenges and discrimination LGBTQ+ travelers face, with 62% in APAC reporting barriers to feeling welcome.
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Multi-Awarded Thai Chef Ton’s Bold Culinary Debut in Malaysia with Sood

🍴 Chef Ton is set to open "Sood", a restaurant in Penang, aiming to become a culinary hub with local and international chef collaborations. Penang's status as a luxury and lifestyle destination with rich heritage enhances this vision. Additionally, Chef Ton plans to launch "As I Am", a new restaurant and bar concept in Kuala Lumpur in a few months, promising affordable yet delicious dining. Sood's opening signifies Chef Ton's venture into Malaysia, blending Thai and Penang flavors, and emphasizing sustainable practices in the food industry.
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  • 2 min

Yum Brands partners with Nvidia to accelerate AI technologies across its global system

🍕 Taco Bell invested over $1 billion in AI, boosting digital sales from 19% to over 50%. Yum Brands, encompassing Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut, and Habit Burger & Grill, partners with Nvidia — the world’s largest company — to bring AI to its 61,000+ restaurants globally. Nvidia's market value surged 850% since 2022. Yum launched Byte by Yum in February and deployed Nvidia voice AI agents in three months. The collaboration will use Nvidia NIM microservices and AI Enterprise to optimize operations.
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  • 3 min

Workforce technology upends restaurant recruitment and retention, study indicates

🍴 By 2035, the restaurant industry will add 150,000 jobs annually, totaling 17.4 million. About 37% of operators plan to use automated labor management and recruitment, with 28% investing in AI solutions. More than 80% believe technology provides a competitive edge in hiring, with 86% of candidates applying via mobile. Still, 54% of operators struggle with management and back-of-house staffing. The Saxton Group reduced hiring time from seven to three days with technology. Retention efforts include structured onboarding and real-time feedback, with the first 30 to 90 days being crucial.
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Why consumers in SE Asia are buying all their food and drinks from convenience stores – DM

🥗 Saladplate, part of Informa Markets, serves as the official content and engagement hub for the Hospitality, Food and Beverage industry. It offers weekly news updates, a monthly newsletter, and a bi-monthly e-magazine. The platform features a supplier directory with over 10,000 brands, companies, and products, alongside access to over 35 international trade events.
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