CAVA Releases First Impact Report Showcasing Values-Led Growth Through Heartfelt Action, Healthful Dining, and Human Connection
How CAVA's mission-driven approach shaped meaningful progress in team member well-being, community care, and culinary excellence
CAVA (NYSE:CAVA), the category-defining Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant brand, today published its first-ever Impact Report, highlighting the company's commitments and progress across three foundational pillars that drive its mission: Heart, Health, and Humanity. Rooted in the brand's vibrant Mediterranean heritage, the report reflects how CAVA is working to nourish communities, manage environmental resources, and support its team members — inside and outside of its restaurants.
Since its founding, CAVA has worked to embed its mission across its business, taking measurable steps to align its impact goals with strategic decision-making, ensuring that values like community care, team member well-being, and responsible sourcing aren't just ideals, but drivers of growth.
"At CAVA, impact isn't something we add on later — it's built into everything we do. Our mission to bring heart, health, and humanity to food is at the center of that, shaping how we support our team, serve our guests, and engage with our communities," said Brett Schulman, co-founder and CEO of CAVA. "This report reflects the intentional work happening across CAVA every day and the responsibility we feel to keep pushing ourselves to do better, together."
Highlights of CAVA's mission-driven achievements in 2024 include:
HEART: Fueled by CAVA's emphasis on the power of human connection and inspired by the Mediterranean ethos of welcoming everyone to the table:
- Strengthened leadership in our team members through CAVA Competency Champion Training, a program where Area Leaders and General Managers inspire, coach, and help develop team members, reaching over 3,200 team members through 150 workshops across the country.
- Provided a variety of benefits and rewards to team members to support their overall well-being, including offering tuition discounts, providing adoption and family planning support, and mental health resources.
- Built an inclusive culture and workplace, through everyday practices, and a company-wide Allies in Motion (AIM) group, which hosted 38 events in 2024 to increase allyship, empathetic listening, and inclusivity.
- Drove an enterprise mindset across the organization through CAVA's Partners in Service program, which includes two ongoing initiatives where Support Center and restaurant team members come together to strengthen connection, empathy, and the guest experience. The Shoulder-to-Shoulder program immerses Support Center team members in restaurants each quarter to better understand and support day-to-day operations, while Centering at the Source recognizes top-performing restaurant team members with visits to CAVA's Support Center to celebrate their success and share best practices.
HEALTH: Defined by serving wholesome and delicious meals that connect and sustain people.
- Found ways to upcycle resources in its supply chain. For instance, when CAVA drains its chickpeas to make fresh falafel, the liquid left behind is called aquafaba (Latin definition = bean water). Instead of discarding the aquafaba, CAVA uses it as an emulsifying ingredient in its garlic dressing, which happens to be the brand's most popular.
- Sourced ingredients through trusted partners, including Manoli Canoli, CAVA's olive and olive oil producer from Sparta, Greece, and Damascus Bakeries, CAVA's sprouted grain pita provider based in Brooklyn, New York.
- Remained committed to sustainable practices through a multi-year project restoring the native Piedmont Savannah habitat around its Verona, VA manufacturing facility, revitalizing five acres by restoring natural plant biodiversity and supporting animal habitat. CAVA is also rethinking waste with guest-facing waste stations, which are being piloted in restaurants.
- Explored more eco-friendly packaging solutions, including efforts to transition cutlery to compostable or marine-degradable materials.
HUMANITY: Focused on bringing people and communities together.
- Joined the fight to end hunger, serving over 42,000 meals to people in need through food bank partners in 2024.
- Aimed at reducing food waste by implementing a range of operational practices that help accurately calibrate production volumes.
- Piloted generative AI tools to better forecast demand and optimize prep. In addition, CAVA partnered with Too Good To Go, a marketplace for surplus food, at 49 participating restaurants to reduce excess food and raise money to support local nonprofit organizations.
- Built community through new market entries by hosting 59 Community Days in 2024 in celebration of new restaurant openings. Since 2022 CAVA has donated $1.2 million in food donation and financial contributions to local organizations.
"Serving bold, Mediterranean flavors and warm hospitality is at the heart of what we do," said Jenny Roberts, CAVA's Senior Director of Sustainability and Sourcing. "But true stewardship means going further by honoring the people who make it possible and making choices that sustain our communities and our planet for the long term. We are proud of the foundation we've laid, and are committed to ensuring our impact scales as we do."
To learn more about CAVA, follow @CAVA on social channels, including TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
About CAVA
CAVA is the category-defining Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant brand, bringing together healthful food and bold, satisfying flavors at scale. Our brand and our opportunity transcend the Mediterranean category to compete in the large and growing limited-service restaurant sector as well as the health and wellness food category. CAVA serves guests across gender lines, age groups, and income levels and benefits from generational tailwinds created by consumer demand for healthy living and a demographic shift towards greater ethnic diversity. We meet consumers' desires to engage with convenient, authentic, purpose-driven brands that view food as a source of self-expression. The broad appeal of our food combined with these favorable industry trends drive our vast opportunity for continued growth.
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