UK: In partnership with Sapling Spirits, Raithwaite Sandsend Hotel has created a forest garden in North Yorkshire to feed the hotel’s kitchen year-round.
Over 500 trees and shrubs have been planted in the hotel’s 100-acre estate for chefs and mixologists to source ingredients.
The hotel team is also set to develop 16 organic no-dig beds, a compost site and two polytunnels to grow fruit and vegetables, with an aim of achieving zero waste status by 2023.
Maritime Capital, which acquired Raithwaite in 2019, has invested in the sustainable development of the hotel.
Ollie Hunter, sustainability director of food and drink at Raithwaite, said: “By introducing the UK’s first hotel forest garden we’ll be able to provide our kitchen and bar with delicious, fresh, perennial fruits, herbs and spices to be used in our menus and cocktails.
“It’s a hugely exciting step in our own sustainability story, which complements our guest experience and opens conversation around sustainability, to educate about how we can all play our part to make a real difference.”
Ed Faulkner, founder of Sapling Spirits, said: “While this partnership is the first of its kind, hopefully we can use it as a blueprint to plant forest gardens and work on other permaculture projects with our customers all over the country. The idea is to use our tree planting to encourage sustainable, hyper localised food production.”
Sapling Spirits plants a tree for each bottle of spirit sold. The company uses local suppliers and ingredients to help reduce emissions from transport.
Further information about sustainability at Raithwaite Sandsend can be found here.
