‘Everything is going to change’: How Eurostar embraced sustainability in its menus

“If you do that, you’re dead.”

So says chef Raymond Blanc OBE when I ask him if, 10 years after first starting as Eurostar’s culinary director, he ever feels uninspired or – shock horror – resorts to recycling old menus.

“As a chef, whatever you do, even if you’ve done that dish a thousand times, if you stop looking at it with curiosity, that dish dies. That’s true to life, to a relationship. I’m lucky that I have a child’s curiosity – I keep asking questions,” he tells me.

The chef patron at Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons, the acclaimed foodie restaurant-hotel in Oxfordshire with two Michelin stars, Blanc probably could afford to rest on his laurels at this stage of his career. But his passion for showcasing the best local, seasonable produce, creating menus that are as sustainable as they are tasty, remains undimmed.

It seems to be why the partnership between Blanc and Eurostar has lasted for so long. Not content with being the most environmentally friendly form of transport when it comes to crossing the Channel – only producing 4kg of carbon emissions per passenger on a London-Paris trip compared to 57.8kg by plane – Eurostar set itself the extra challenge of offering onboard catering that was equally low impact.

Since pairing up with Blanc a decade ago, the company has worked intensively with the Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA), a not-for-profit membership organisation encouraging businesses to up their sustainability game, to become the only transport company to achieve its highest accreditation of three stars – an accolade Eurostar has hung onto for three consecutive years.

“That’s why for me it’s a natural partnership with Eurostar, because they understand those values – their carbon footprint is so low,” says Blanc.

The SRA certification process is rigorous, grading food businesses across 14 categories, including their use of ingredients that are seasonal, Fairtrade or organic, not air-freighted, and sourced from farmers with high environmental and welfare standards.

And three stars is no mean feat – it demonstrates “exceptional” all-round sustainability, with companies…