A plant-based menu strategy isn’t simply checking an extra box at Elior North America. This shift toward more sustainable ingredients and dishes is a pillar of Elior’s dining philosophy, and a way the company strives to create meaningful, long-lasting change.

With the release of the 2025 Social & Environmental Responsibility report, Elior North America showed measurable progress, most notably with a rise on the HWA’s annual Food Service Industry Protein Sustainability Scorecard, where Elior North America ranked second among all food service companies in the United States. After receiving an “A” rating on the scorecard in 2022, 2023, and 2024, Elior North America made a step forward in 2025, receiving an A+ rating in protein sustainability from the Humane World for Animals (HWA).

As a result of these intentional efforts to create more sustainable protein sources across menu offerings, Elior North America was awarded the Impact Award from the HWA at the 2026 National Restaurant Association Show in Chicago in May.

Consistency is the key to success for Elior’s sustainability teams. While the data shows a year-over-year snapshot of improvement, these shifts come from years of trial and error, research, strategic planning, and the dedication of a team striving to make a positive impact.

At the core of this team is Sherie Nelson, Senior Director of Responsibility & Wellness at Elior North America. Sherie has led the way for Elior North America’s plant-based shift for years, playing a significant role in achieving goals like ensuring 50 percent of all new entrees developed in 2025 were plant-based. Assisting Sherie in these efforts has been Director of Wellness & Social Environmental Responsibility Abby Olson. 

Together, along with strong partners at the HWA, Sherie and Abby have successfully engaged teams across Elior North America to make these plant-based initiatives more than just tasks. By establishing guidelines and strategies that are easy for operators and chefs to implement into their menus across every food service industry Elior operates in, this team has created a cultural shift that can consistently be executed for years to come.

With the addition of the HWA’s Impact Award to the trophy case, the results speak for themselves.