Where commercial meets ethical: embracing the spirit of social enterprise

Where commercial meets ethical: embracing the spirit of social enterprise

In-person Business Forum dinner meeting

In 2026, our Business Forum community is exploring where commercial meets ethical: opportunities for ethical approaches in an unethical world. In this second dinner meeting of 2026, we will ask ‘Can major food and farming businesses take on the spirit of social enterprises and, if so, how?’ Are they anti-social enterprises at heart and can leopards ever change their spots? What potential do businesses have to deliver social and environmental impact at a time of global conflict and uncertainty? Some will argue that you can have a social enterprise spirit without being a social enterprise. Others will disagree.

The Buy Social Corporate Challenge has been running for almost ten years, encouraging corporates to buy from social enterprise suppliers. But could, or should, that be extended to the Be Social Corporate Challenge, with more fundamental changes to how commercial businesses operate? If we think big, can – and should – agri-food businesses all be social enterprises? If not, why not? If so, how we can move in that direction?

Traditional profit-driven businesses have a lot to learn from progressive social enterprises working in, or with, food systems – but surely social enterprises can learn from traditional commercial enterprises too.

This in-person dinner meeting will provide an opportunity for participants to:

• Understand more about the value of social enterprise and what food & farming businesses can do to support social enterprise within the existing paradigm
• Explore whether and how traditional businesses might truly embrace social enterprise spirit or even shake things up and become social enterprises themselves
• Consider implications for policy and legislation, including the Better Business Act and the UK Government’s Good Food Cycle strategy
• Explore routes forward and consider what changemakers in business can do individually, and collectively, to ‘be social’

Speakers will include Peter Holbrook, Chief Executive of Social Enterprise UK. The discussion will be chaired by Dan Crossley, Executive Director of the Food Ethics Council.

Register now to secure your place.

Note: this event is for members of our Business Forum. If you’re not a member and are interested in finding out more about how to become a member, please contact Dan via dan@foodethicscouncil.org.