The Re-Seasoning Coalition launches to increase Black representation within the foodservice industry

Toronto, Sept. 27, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, The Re-Seasoning Coalition (TRSC), a non-profit initiative dedicated to helping achieve greater representation for Black Canadians within the foodservice industry at every level, launches with support from Restaurants Canada. 

TRSC's goal is to take meaningful action to dismantle the inequalities experienced by Black Canadians in the industry. Racism affects everyone, but each group experiences it differently. Black Canadians in particular face immense barriers to success. They also grapple with the impacts of inequality at higher rates than others, including seeking opportunities in organizations that are not adequately prepared to support, retain and advance equity-deserving Canadians. 

Through a series of interactive modules, TRSC will assess and validate participants' HR policies to reconfigure them in alignment with anti-racist and anti-oppression guidelines in a bid to equip participating companies with the tools and frameworks that will help them attract diverse talent and become the best in class brands of the future. Just as a good cast iron skillet needs to be re-seasoned regularly for optimum performance, the Canadian food industry needs to be re-calibrated to ensure it has proper representation, talent retention, service delivery and innovation. 

"Restaurants Canada is thrilled to support The Re-Seasoning Coalition in its aim to disrupt discriminatory and racially biased frameworks," said Christian Buhagiar, President and CEO, Restaurants Canada. "we look forward to supporting businesses to achieve a more diverse, equitable and inclusive future". 

In launching The Re-Seasoning Coalition, the initiative partnered with Technomic, a consulting firm specializing in foodservice industry research, to conduct a deep dive on understanding the Black guest and employee experience within the foodservice industry. The findings shed light on significant trends within the industry: 

• Canadian consumers see a need for diversity, equity and inclusion practices to be implemented at the restaurants and food delivery apps they use, with 48 per cent of Canadians saying it should be a priority and 58 per cent of Canadians 18-to-34-years-old also in agreement;
• Black consumers are more likely to experience or witness racial discrimination at restaurants, with 69 per cent of Black guests saying they have experienced or witnessed racial prejudice compared to 51 per cent for the national average; and 
• Black employees are more likely to experience or witness racial discrimination at work, with 50 per cent in agreement with this statement, compared to 29 per cent of employees of other races

To learn more about The Re-Seasoning Coalition, register for their upcoming webinar in collaboration with Technomic: ?The Black Experience In Foodservice'. Taking place on Tuesday, October 4th, from 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM ET, the conversation will take a deep dive into the Black experience in the foodservice industry, reviewing the findings of recent Restaurants Canada and Technomic research profiling operator, employee, and guest experiences with racism and anti-Black discrimination. The webinar will also share how consumers now expect foodservice organizations across the industry to evolve and become more equitable, diverse, and inclusive.

For more details, the full report, or to become a member of The Re-Seasoning Coalition, visit www.thereseasoning.org

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About The Re-Seasoning Coalition

Created in 2020, The Re-Seasoning Coalition (TRSC) is a non-profit organization working to increase the representation of Black Canadians across every organizational level of the foodservice industry. TRSC programming takes an interactive approach by partnering with companies to equip them with the tools to be more equitable, inclusive, diverse, and empowering for the benefit of their bottom line and the communities they serve. 

Learn more about how you can get involved at www.thereseasoning.org. 

About Restaurants Canada

Restaurants Canada is a national, not-for-profit association advancing the potential of Canada's diverse and dynamic foodservice industry through member programs, research, advocacy, resources and events. Before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada's foodservice sector was a $95 billion industry, directly employing 1.2 million people, providing Canada's number one source of first jobs and serving 22 million customers across the country every day. The industry has since lost hundreds of thousands of jobs and billions in sales due to the impacts of COVID-19. www.restaurantscanada.org