Selecting Catering Suppliers for Music Festival Staff.

Any sizeable music festival that runs over multiple days in a remote location will need to provide sufficient catering facilities for the hundreds of festival staff and volunteers. Selecting the right catering supplier is crucial to ensuring that staff have access to regular meals and drinks for the entire event's duration. What factors need to be considered when selecting a catering supplier?

The well-known saying “An army marches on its stomach” means an army needs to be well-provisioned in order to be effective (often attributed to Napoleon Bonaparte). The same applies to the army of staff and volunteers that work tirelessly over a music festival's duration. The catering services provided can impact staff morale, energy levels, and overall productivity contributing to the event's overall success. 

Defining Catering Requirements. 
Festival organisers should clearly define their staff catering requirements early in the planning process. A well-documented invitation to tender could be issued to potential catering companies which will include the budget available along with capacity requirements. This document will also provide the specific needs of the festival which may include the quality and variety to be offered and the provision for pre-packaged meals for staff on the go. Organisers will also stipulate the need for sustainability and health and safety compliance along with all necessary food safety standards and any applicable certifications. 

Selection Process. 
Organisers will probably have a short list of catering companies who have previous experience in supplying the festival sector and may be a mixture of previously used suppliers plus some new companies who come recommended with glowing testimonials. In any competitive tender process organisers should choose from at least 3 potential suppliers (sometimes an accounting audit requirement). Shortlisted suppliers will need to submit proposals that include pricing, menus and other services. In some cases, potential suppliers may be required to attend a tasting session to ascertain if the food supplied will match with staff needs. Once selected the successful catering supplier will be required to sign a contract that details expectations, meal schedules and logistics integration requirements. 

Logistics Integration.
Most large-scale music festivals now use sophisticated event management software and this usually includes staff meal selection and scheduling linked to scanning technology. Catering suppliers can upload menu options to this software and organisers will then send links to staff and volunteers to pre-select meals. This ensures that catering suppliers have data in advance and know what meals to provide on which day and at what time. All staff will be issued with RFID wristbands or similar technology that enables scanning by caterers who can then verify the staff member and provide the pre-selected meal. This process ensures that staff only take the meal allocated and not multiple portions. Catering companies will also need to make allowances for staff who change selection in real time and needs a fine balance of ingredient ordering that could mean a 10% overage supply of meals for example. Festival organisers will also monitor how catering suppliers manage the delivery, storage and processing of fresh ingredients to meet any pre-defined standards. In addition, the caterer’s waste management will come under scrutiny so that they fit in with the sustainability requirements of the organisers. 

For festival organisers planning their next events using a software management platform like Festival Pro gives them all the functionality they need manage every aspect of their event logistics including a dedicated catering management functionality. The guys who are responsible for this software have been in the front line of event management for many years and the features are built from that experience and are performance artists themselves. The Festival Pro platform is easy to use and has comprehensive features with specific modules for managing artists, contractors, venues/stages, vendors, volunteers, sponsors, guestlists, ticketing, cashless payments and contactless ordering.

Image by Julia M Cameron via Pexels

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