This initiative, executed in partnership with Eatable Adventures, a Foodtech accelerator, aligns with the company's comprehensive ESG agenda, 'Areas for Change'. This strategy underlines a commitment to people, the planet, and the future of travel, with a particular focus on delivering sustainable and innovative approaches to minimise environmental impact, combat climate change, and steer the company towards enhanced sustainability.

Launched in November, the second iteration of the 'Areas for Change Challenge' sought to engage the international entrepreneurial ecosystem in identifying tangible and practical solutions to the imminent challenges faced by Areas, and the broader Food & Beverage and Travel Retail industry, with an emphasis on sustainability.

Out of numerous submissions from startups across the United States, Europe, and Asia, Areas and Eatable Adventures have chosen four winners. Each represents a category critical to sustainability: recycling, water management, returnable packaging, and circularity in uniforms.

• The Utrecht-based startup, Orbisk, in the 'recycling' category, for helping the hospitality industry significantly reduce food waste. Its innovative solution automatically records and recognizes discarded food, detailing the type, quantity, and time of day. Its technology allows teams to immediately engage in waste reduction initiatives without the need for training. Furthermore, information capture and data collection require no manual intervention by the user.

• Shayp, a Belgian startup, in the 'water management' category, for implementing intelligent algorithms to enable its users to address the issue of water scarcity, achieving a 21% reduction in water consumption. Its patented IoT technology is versatile, as it adapts to any type of water meter without requiring complicated installations and guarantees a 10-year battery life.

• The Paris-based Bibak, in the 'returnable packaging' category, for revolutionizing the takeaway food sector and addressing the issue of single-use packaging through an innovative sustainable system that includes food containers, connected kiosks, and a highly efficient operational process. The company implements terminals that facilitate the return process for consumers, providing an automated solution that integrates refunds, cashback, and gamification. Through this comprehensive system, customers enjoy detailed inventory tracking, precise return rate measurements, refund flow control, as well as quantification of environmental impact and generation of real-time personalized reports.

• Areas has also awarded the Barcelona-based startup 'Circoolar' for providing solutions in fashion, textiles, and their applications related to employee uniforms. In this regard, Circoolar specializes in the ethical and sustainable production of work uniforms, as well as in the creation of textile merchandising under the principles of the circular economy and social impact.

These companies will have the opportunity to work with Areas, access its international network, develop a pilot programme at one of the points of sale.

The selected startups were received by Areas at an event held at the company's global headquarters in Barcelona, during which the entrepreneurs were able to explain their proposal in detail, meet and present their products to the project's driving team and the Areas global management team.