Skip to main content
Food & Meal

Imagine a truly energised workforce

The right fuel can transform a team's performance. Give your people a flexible food budget for groceries, meal kits and a proper lunch, so they can feel and work their best.

FSA 936x936 (8)

Fuel performance

Lunch isn't just a break. It's what keeps your team going through the afternoon, and most people aren't getting one.

36%

take a lunch break every day

Only around a third of full-time UK employees stop for lunch every day.

Source: survey of 2,000 UK employees for Gosh!, 2025

59%

struggle with the afternoon slump

Skipped or rushed lunches show up later in the day as lost energy and focus.

Source: survey of 2,000 UK employees for Gosh!, 2025

37%

have skipped lunch over stress or cost

Stress and cost keep people from eating properly at work. A food budget takes one of those off the table.

Source: Just Eat for Business, 2022

An investment in daily performance

A well-fed team is a productive team. A flexible food budget is a simple, direct investment in the daily happiness, focus and engagement of your people.

Groceries

Groceries

Supermarkets, farm shops, specialist grocers

Meal Kits and Delivery

Meal Kits & Delivery

Meal kits, prepared meals, food delivery

Lunch and Coffee

Lunch & Coffee

Local cafés, sandwich shops, coffee

Custom Bundle

Mix and match what your team needs.

Build Bundle

Food budget or Canteen Credit? Here's how HMRC sees it

Most food support is taxable. Meals in your own staff canteen can be tax-free, as long as the credit is set up the right way. Here's the difference, and how SideUp handles both.

Wherever they eat

Food budget

Lifestyle benefit

Taxable

What it covers

Groceries, meal kits, food delivery, and lunch or coffee near the office.

Best for

Remote, hybrid and office teams alike, because it works at home and at work.

SideUp's role

Runs the whole benefit for you.

Your staff canteen

Canteen Credit

Section 317 ITEPA 2003

Tax-free, when it's set up right

What it covers

Free or subsidised meals, on a reasonable scale, in your staff canteen.

How SideUp keeps it tax-free

Locked to your canteen. The credit only works at your canteen's own till, not at any other café or restaurant.

Open to everyone. Every employee, or every employee at a location, gets it.

A separate pot. Given on top of pay, never through salary sacrifice, and it can't be swapped for another benefit.

A real staff canteen. If it also serves the public, meals are taken in a staff-only area.

SideUp's role

Runs Canteen Credit as its own pot, kept apart from your flexible budgets.

A summary, not tax advice. Check your arrangement with a tax adviser.

See How SideUp Works in 4 Easy Steps

FSA 936x936 (21)
FSA 936x936 (22)
FSA 936x936 (23)
FSA 936x936 (24)
01.

Choose your benefits

Decide which benefits you want to offer and who they apply to.
02.

Implement your policy

Set your budget, eligibility rules, and spending limits. Our platform handles the compliance and guardrails automatically.

03.

Connect to payroll

Seamlessly integrate with your existing payroll provider. We handle the tax implications and reporting for you.

04.

Join the SideUp platform

Invite your team. They get their cards, you get the credit for being an amazing employer. Everyone wins.

Set it up once. Your team feels it every week.

Most spending happens on the card, so there's almost nothing to chase. Here's how it works, from day one.

  1. 1

    Add your employees

    Sync your team from your HR system, or add them manually. Either way, it takes minutes.

  2. 2

    Set up your programme

    Choose your benefits, decide when they're paid out, and pick how your company funds them.

  3. 3

    We invite your team

    SideUp emails each employee an invitation to the app. Once they've completed onboarding, their card is issued.

  4. 4

    Manage it month by month

    Track spend and take-up, and keep your compliance information in one place, ready whenever you need it.

SideUpFood & Meal
Emily Carter•••• 2046

Weekly grocery shop

Supermarket

£42.50

Lunch near the office

Thursday

£8.95

Food budget this month

£118 of £150

Illustrative example

REAL IMPACT, MEASURED IN RESULTS

The numbers don't lie

Based on SideUp’s internal research comparing clients with vs. without flexible stipends. When you give employees choice, the numbers speak for themselves.

eNPS Points
+35
eNPS Points
Clients using SideUp consistently score +35 points higher than those relying on standard perks.
Is your culture healthy or at risk?
Get your free Diagnostic →
Profit
+ 23%
Profit
Employees who are happy with their benefits are more productive and can increase a company’s revenue by up to 23%.
ROI
10x
ROI
For every $1 spent on SideUp stipends, companies save $10 in retention costs and productivity gains.
The SideUp Marketplace

Every pound goes further. And stays local.

Our marketplace brings your team closer to the independent cafés, gyms, shops and services in their own neighbourhood. When they spend their SideUp budget there, they unlock exclusive discounts and freebies, so the same benefit buys more.

✓

Exclusive discounts for SideUp members

✓

Freebies and extras from local partners

✓

Your benefits budget, backing local businesses

A Saturday on the high street

The Corner Café

£8.95

Marketplace discount

−£1.35

Northside Yoga Studio

£12.00

Free mat hire

Freebie

Saved this month

£9.60

Illustrative example

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know about food and meal benefits in the UK.

What can a food benefit be used for?

Groceries, meal kits, prepared meals, food delivery, and lunch or coffee near the office. You choose which categories are eligible.

Is a food benefit taxable?

Yes. Food & Meal is a Lifestyle benefit, so it's treated as a taxable benefit. In return, your team can spend it wherever eating well works for them, at home or at work.

Are there cases where food isn't taxable?

Yes. Meals in a staff canteen or on your premises are exempt when they're on a reasonable scale and available to all your employees, or all employees at a location (section 317 ITEPA 2003).

Can SideUp pay for meals in our staff canteen?

Yes, through Canteen Credit. It's a separate pot, locked to your canteen's own till, available to all your employees and given on top of pay. It can't come from salary sacrifice or be swapped for another benefit, because either would remove the exemption.

Why can't Canteen Credit be part of the flexible budget?

The canteen exemption doesn't apply when meals are provided through salary sacrifice or a flexible benefits choice. Keeping Canteen Credit as its own fixed pot is what keeps it tax-free.

How much should we offer?

You decide. Set a monthly food budget per employee, and a separate Canteen Credit amount if you have a staff canteen.

How does SideUp handle it?

Employees spend with their SideUp card, within the budgets and categories you set. Food budget and Canteen Credit are tracked separately and automatically.

Boost daily engagement

Ready to modernise your benefits?

Join hundreds of forward-thinking companies using SideUp to attract and retain top talent. Book a demo to see Food & Meal in action.