The values that govern our business are reinforced by our company culture.
Eatsy: Nourishing ourselves and our community
Our company-wide meal program, Eatsy, is much more than a lunch break. It serves to strengthen the ties between our food systems, our communities, and one another. From its origins when the entire company would gather around a single picnic table to the nearly 50,000 meals served this year, sharing food and conversation has been a cornerstone of Etsy culture. Beyond the plate is a strong vision: a food program that builds topsoil, supports communities, and nourishes all. From menu planning and ingredient sourcing to composting plates and doling out leftovers at the end of the day, Eatsy is intentional and mindful, from soup to nuts.
Mindful meals
In our Brooklyn office, with over 400 lunches served at a time, our family-style meal translates into a joyous, chaotic buffet. We work closely with our caterers to plan meals that are nutri- tionally well-balanced, mostly organic, and sourced as locally as possible.
Serving lunch twice a week, rather than every day, allows us to be thoughtful about the meals we prepare. This keeps Eatsy special, fostering a sense of gratitude. More broadly, good food figures prominently in Etsy’s culture of celebration that runs through everything from small team meetings to company-wide parties. Whatever the occasion, we seek out caterers and Etsy sellers who can make each event as unique as the food and goods they make.
Nourishing to our food system
The Eatsy program delivered an estimated 47,740 lunches in 2014. That’s a lot of food and energy. We work constantly to ensure the money, nutrients, and spirit that flow through our food program embody our values.
Efficient use of resources means minimizing waste and ensuring materials and nutrients are recycled back into the food system. Avoiding food-related waste such as packaging and disposable servingware is an ongoing effort. We work with our food providers to limit the waste they bring to our offices. We purchase most items in bulk, and use silverware and glass- ware instead of disposables. While we don’t have the capacity to serve meals on china dishware, we compost our plates and napkins. We also compost most of our organic waste—several of our offices compost 100% of organics. Our Brooklyn office partners with a local farm to compost our plates and food scraps, which we deliver to the farm via a custom bicycle cart.
We use caterers who meet our sourcing and quality standards. Several have grown alongside us, using the steady stream of business from Eatsy as a way to bolster their businesses and fund new projects. Four of them have even opened their own brick-and-mortar locations.
In 2015 we are reaching further back along our value chain, partnering with our caterers to develop local sources for hard-to-find ingredients, like pasture-raised meats.