Why Premier League club is getting rid of beef burgers from stadium menu

A Premier League club has decided to start moving away from the traditional beef burger

Brentford have replaced beef burgers with wild venison on their stadium menu (REUTERS)

Britain's stadium menus are undergoing a significant transformation, with the traditional beef burger increasingly being replaced by wild venison in a concerted effort to drastically cut carbon emissions.

Venues such as Brentford's Gtech Stadium are leading this culinary shift.

Levy UK, the hospitality partner spearheading the initiative, projects that this move, now expanding to over 20 locations across the UK and Ireland, could slash emissions by an impressive 85 per cent.

This translates to an annual saving of up to 1,182 tonnes of CO₂e (Carbon Dioxide Equivalent).

"Beef has the highest impact in terms of carbon emissions in all of our ingredients that we offer," explained James Beale, Head of Sustainability and Community at Brentford, to Reuters.

"We wanted to replace that with wild venison that has 85% less carbon emissions per kilogram than our beef burgers. So, it has a massive impact."

Brentford are replacing beef burgers with wild venison on their stadium menu (Getty Images)

The programme involves supplying wild venison portions, served in eco-friendly packaging alongside condiments crafted from surplus vegetables.

This innovative approach is set to replace what would have amounted to 54 tonnes of beef burgers.

The venison burger made its debut at Brentford's stadium and has since proven popular, with nearly 5,500 wild venison burgers sold at Twickenham in a single month, including during the women's Rugby World Cup final in September.

Beale confirmed its success, stating: "Our fans really like it. It's more popular than the beef burger from last year."

While independent studies offer varying figures on the precise carbon gap between beef and wild venison, Levy highlights that Britain's estimated two million wild deer, lacking natural predators, are instrumental in this sustainability drive.

Utilising wild venison reduces reliance on artificial inputs, mitigates water contamination, and supports biodiversity, offering a lower-carbon alternative to beef.

Levy, also a partner at Tottenham Hotspur, is extending its nationwide rollout to include The Oval cricket ground in London, the National Theatre, The O2, and the National Exhibition Centre.

Tottenham Hotspur itself boasts award-winning sustainability initiatives, including its N17 Burger, which uses plant-based ingredients to reduce meat content and achieve a 33 per cent reduction in emissions per burger.