About Us
Meet The Team
With over 25 years in hospitality operations across Australia, Joel moved to Hong Kong in the spring of 2017 for a fresh challenge. In early 2018, he joined Grassroots Pantry and one of his first tasks was to undertake a Life Cycles Assessment of the restaurant through Zero Foodprint. This allowed him to realise firsthand the impact restaurant practices can have on the environment and from there on, GP became Asia's first carbon-neutral restaurant. Since then, he's gone down a massive rabbit hole of all things climate, processing dozens of white paper journals and peer-reviewed reports to absorb as much information as he can on food-related climate solutions.
With ZFPA, Joel will be looking after partnerships whether on recruiting and on-boarding restaurants and food businesses or to answer any questions you may have throughout this journey.
Joel Tomas
Director of Partnerships
In 2012, Peggy Chan opened Grassroots Pantry (GP) in Hong Kong with a mission to raise awareness of the inequities in our food system and to share knowledge on the benefits of whole food plant-based cuisine. In 2019, GP's first sustainability report was recognized by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals ESCAP as a best practice case study on sustainable sourcing and responsible management.
In 2020, Peggy developed Grassroots Initiatives Consultancy to assist foodservice professionals in their transition towards best practices that meet both human and planetary health goals.
Over the years Peggy has emerged as one of the region’s most authoritative voices on organic sourcing and systems thinking design. A thought leader and a natural do-er, Peggy works diligently with multiple global ngo networks and organizations to help shape future food policies designed to address human, social and ecological needs.
Peggy is a two time Tedx speaker, an alumni of Global Shapers Hong Kong, World Economic Forum and a HK Environmental Excellence Awardee in the service sector.
Peggy Chan
Executive Director
Nick just completed a master's degree in Food Studies at NYU and now returned to Hong Kong to work with us in full! It seemed a good fit to combine his nous for marketing, with his love for food - especially when it's to do with promoting food produced locally.
Nick has been working with us since last summer, handling our communication platforms and administrative work. He's looking forward to developing his skills in the food sustainability field while working to support ZFPA farmer grantees to regain food sovereignty.
Nick Leung
Content & Communications Strategist
Min has worked extensively in the F&B industry and is the founder of Starter Lab Bakery (SG + Bali) and Wheatfields Group Bali.
Incorporating sustainable practices was in the DNA of her businesses and of utmost importance.
Min hopes to connect the F&B industry with ZFPA through meaningful partnerships.
Min Siah
Restaurant Partnerships Lead (SG/Bali)
Hilda has been working in environmental NGOs for the past 5 years after obtaining a bachelor’s degree in environmental science. Throughout her work, she came to realize the connection between human well-being, biodiversity, and soil health, especially on agricultural lands. She has initiated with colleagues a local project to implement and monitor regenerative farming, where she obtained hands-on experience with thermal composting, vegetable farming, and soil health field tests. She also has experience in soil bacteria lab work.
She looks forward to supporting our local farmers’ transition to regenerative farming while monitoring soil health key indicators.
Hilda Chan
Lead TAP (Volunteer)
Lucy relocated to Hong Kong in 2021 and has fallen in love with the land and sea on her doorstep. She recognises that a restorative, redistributive food system is crucial to protect these natural resources and secure future planetary and human health.
Lucy advocates for cooperation over competition to achieve radical change in our food system. Leveraging her background in developing sustainability strategies for corporate clients, she supports the team by forging creative partnerships to amplify our impact through collective action.
Lucy Cromwell
Partnerships Lead (HK/SG)
Why did we bring Zero Foodprint to Asia?
Asia’s population is expected to hit 5 billion by 2035, with the continent currently responsible for over 50% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. If the world and its leaders are serious about reducing their carbon footprint, Asia should be the place to start.
Food systems account for more than one third of GHG and is often overlooked as a primary contributor to overall carbon emissions. Restaurants, bars and cafes are the lifeblood of cities like ours which filters down to the local hawker markets that play a pivotal role in Asian cities.
While China has recently set out its net zero emission target for 2060 and Hong Kong by 2050, the potential for the ZFP model to apply in cities across the continent is enormous.
Why Hong Kong to start?
Because the city boasts the highest number of restaurants per capita in the world and is a consumer market that relies heavily on the convenience of takeaway and dining out. We can catalyse this existing consumption culture to fund solutions designed to immediately help combat climate change.
ZFPA aims to create a “new normal” by mobilising restaurants to directly support improvements in the food system with just a few dollars per diner - to help reverse climate change while creating delicious, nutritious food for all.
Advisory Members
Ms Josephine Mak Chen Wen-Ning
Ms. Josephine is the Founder and Chairlady of Homeland Green Hong Kong, an organisation with the aim to promote regenerative agriculture and soil conservation as well as fighting for environmental awareness on the issue all across Asia. With an extensive history in education, she has grown into the role of a Regenerative Farming Educator and Soil Health Expert and we are so thankful to have her on board.
Founder & Chairlady of Homeland Green | Regenerative Farming Educator & Soil Health Expert
Dr. Shauhrat Chopra
Dr. Shauhrat S. Chopra is the Assistant Professor of Sustainability Engineering at the School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong. His data-driven research is focused on designing life cycle assessment and related models to quantify sustainability and resilience in support of decision-making. Lately, Shauhrat is engaged in research related to the Food waste-Energy-Water-Emissions (FEWE) nexus framework, which was developed and implemented as part of the Global Consortium for Sustainability Outcomes (GCSO)- funded project on Sustainable Kitchens.
Assistant Professor at School of Energy and Environment at City University of HK | Life Cycle Assessment Scientist
Janice Leung Hayes
Janice is an independent food writer and social entrepreneur with a deep love of food - from its sources, makers and growers, sellers and eaters. She is the founder of Honestly Green, Capsule 48 and Tong Chong Street Market (TCSM). TCSM incorporates eco-living with food to promote healthy living and sustainability, and it features everything from fresh farmers’ produce to creative dishes, cooking tips, and the latest food and beverage trends.
Founder of Honestly Green & Capsule 48 | Prominent Food Writer & Journalist
Alvin Li
Alvin is a sustainability consultant, impact investor and policy researcher. Alvin co-founded The Kommon Goods, a green products provider offering eco-friendly products. He was named Global Shaper by the World Economic Forum, and invited to speak at international conferences like UN COP25 and WTO. He holds a Masters in Management and Masters in Social Innovation, both at the University of Cambridge, and is currently completing his PhD in Public Policy at HKUST.
Co-founder of The Kommon Goods | Public Policy and Social Innovation
Nithiya Laila
Nithiya is a culinary anthropologist based in Singapore, she has been a long advocate for (bio)diversity, ethno-plants, and reshaping Asia’s stories of how the produce we grow and consume is a big part of our identity. Over the years, she has hosted a TV show exploring Farm to Table movements and foraging across Asia. She also runs a culture-based pop-up dining club called Brunch Bandits to promote cuisines of the global south, building connections and spreading its diversity. Nithiya is currently building a platform for farmers to locate and exchange seeds supported by the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment of Singapore, working to reintroduce indigenous species, decolonize our plates, and build food sovereignty.
Culinary Anthropologist | Host of TV series Edible Wild
Board of Directors
Anthony Myint
Co-founder & Executive Director of Zero Foodprint
Anthony is the Co-Founder and Executive Director Zero Foodprint. He is a chef turned climate crusader who co-founded Mission Chinese Food, The Perennial and Commonwealth restaurants. Zero Foodprint was named 2020 Humanitarian of the Year by the James Beard Foundation and 2019 winner of the Basque Culinary World Prize and leads public private collaborations with California state agencies and regional governments in Boulder and Denver, Colorado to scale climate beneficial farming.
Cherrie de Erit Atilano
Cherrie is the CEO, President and Founding Farmer of AGREA Agricultural Systems International,Inc. and Philippine Ambassador on Food Security. She started teaching farmers at the age of 12, and has 22 years of vast experience in Sustainable Food Systems. She is a High-Level Ambassador Lead Group Member of the United Nations Scaling Up Nutrition, 2020 Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum, Asia Society Young Leader and a Board Member of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) based in Geneva, Switzerland.
Founding Farmer, President & CEO of AGREA | UN Food Systems Champion | WEF Young Global Leader
Terrence Tsang
Terrence has been in the hospitality business for over 25 years and provides a holistic perspective, combining strategic, theoretical and practical experience with business acumen from his operations and corporate background. As founder and managing partner of Quality Quotient Solutions Ltd, Terrence’s approach to his clients involves bringing back the basics, industry trends, focusing on the perspective of “who are the real customers” and adopting non-conventional out of the box solutions.
Founder & Managing Partner of Quality Quotient Solutions Ltd | Hospitality Management Consultant
Dr. Margaret Burnett
Dr. Margaret has professional experience crosses the private, public and NGO sectors on sustainability matters. Margaret teaches business ethics, stakeholder engagement, disclosure frameworks, ESG, among other topics, has developed and delivered sustainability leadership training modules, and partnered with international NGO to deliver experiential learning for leadership development. She is often a guest speaker, and partners with organizations in Hong Kong to provide support to their in-house corporate responsibility and sustainable development initiatives. An avid supporter of NGO and community groups with the aim of creating value through partnerships.
Programme Director, Master of Social Sciences in Sustainability Leadership and Governance, Centre for Civil Society and Governance at The University of Hong Kong.
Manuel Klarmann
As a co-founder and CEO, Manuel is since its kick-off in 2008 an enthusiastic and active part of Eaternity.At the heart of this is the vision to establish climate friendly meals in society. Manuel is fascinated by decentralized technologies that empower people. He loves good vegan food and great human centric design. He holds a degree in Mathematics and Psychology and has a Master of Science in Neural Systems and Computations (Neuroinformatics) from ETH in Zürich.
Co-founder and CEO of Eaternity | Life Cycle Assessment Expert
Dr. Ying Li
Dr. Ying Li is the Sustainable Agriculture Director of The Nature Conservancy in China. She is the committee member of the Scientific Popularization and Education in Soil Science Society of China. Ying has research experience in both the academia and private sector. Her current work focuses on researching and promoting sustainable agricultural development in response to climate change, building a multi-stakeholder cooperation platform, improving soil health and biodiversity by scaling regenerative agriculture and farmland carbon sequestration to increase the farmer resilience and strengthen food and nutrition security.
Conservation & Agriculture Director at The Nature Conservancy China | PhD in Plant Biotechnology and Plant Pathology
Mr. Li is a practicing solicitor in Hong Kong. He has extensive experience in legal profession and his practice focuses on civil litigation, company & commercial law, and corporate financing & restructuring. In addition to his professional practice, Mr. Li has ample experience in public and community services. He is currently an executive committee member of Auxiliary Medical Service Volunteer Team, and Area Committee of Yau Tsim Mong North District & Lay Assessor of Medical Council of Hong Kong.
Legal Advisor Partner
