TastEd is a charity that brings sensory food education to the UK. They provide free lesson plans and training for teachers to deliver a playful, evidence-based approach to food education.
East Lancashire Hospital Trust has been working with Forestry England on a wild venison partnership. In the first year of the partnership, 1,000kg of diced venison was used in nutritious meals for patients and staff.
Tim Radcliffe, previously ELHT Facilities Manager and now NHS Net Zero Food Programme Manager for NHS England, said: “Being judged a finalist in these awards is a wonderful endorsement for the approach we’re taking in this partnership. Wild venison ticks all the boxes of the Trust’s goals from sustainability to health and means we can give patients and staff meals which are full of nutrients to aid recovery and promote good health. Our chefs love creating dishes with it, patients enjoy eating it and it’s a cost neutral option in comparison to other meats as it’s sourced from within 20 miles of our hospitals.”
The nominated finalists across all six categories include:
- Best Food Producer: Ardgay Game (Sutherland), The Edinburgh Butter Co and Tablehurst Farm
- Best Drinks Producer: Little Pomona (Herefordshire), Summerdown (Hampshire) and Sugrue South Downs (Sussex)
- Best Shop or Market: Mini Miss Bread (Essex), Locavore (central Scotland) and EMS (Hull)
- Best Streetfood/takeaway: Pabellon (London), The Snack Shack at Dungeness Fish Hut (Kent) and Celtic Bain (west Wales)
- Food Innovation: NIAB (Cambridge), TastEd and East Lancashire Hospital Trust & Forestry England
- The Farming Today Farming for the Future Award: Jake Freestone Overbury Farms, Wakelyns Farm Suffolk and Griffith Eggs Shropshire.