QSR: The Evolution Of Farm-To-Table Fast Casual

While serving only produce grown by yourself is not a realistic short-term goal, some fast-casual restaurants are implementing the practice due to a slew of incentives.

For one, farm-to-table is a major trend. And as fast casual restaurants become healthier and increase in quality, it makes sense to move in a more self-sufficient direction. Another major incentive is the community involvement it encourages.

Jon Olinto, cofounder of healthy fast casual b.good, launched a small farm called Hannah Farm earlier in 2016. As of now, seventy-five percent of the produce from the farm feeds kids at Camp Harbor View, an at-risk urban youth program. The other twenty-five percent of produce goes back to b.good.

“It can drive a lot of customer engagement,” Olinto told QSR. “Volunteer sign-up was sold out in less than 48 hours. People were fired up to come work with us for a day. We had two customers every weekday for two months. That’s huge.”

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