Dorset catering company, Local Food Links (LFL), has served up millions of school meals since it was founded in 2006.
What began as soup and a roll followed by a slice of cake one day a week at Bridport Primary School has since grown into a social enterprise supplying approximately 3,000 freshly prepared hot school meals every day to 33 schools across Dorset from four kitchens in Bridport, Dorchester, Blandford and Shillingstone.
On 13 January, pupils at schools served by LFL were served roast beef and Yorkshire pudding or Homity Pie, followed by a birthday cupcake.
LFL chief executive said: “Each pupil was also given a special edition tenth birthday recipe book featuring ten LFL recipes to take home, enabling them to enjoy fabulous food at weekends and in the school holidays while also learning to cook.”
She added: “It has been a privilege to play a part in bringing hot school meals back to many Dorset schools over the past ten years.
“We have developed an innovative and sustainable local model, and become an expert in provisions for small schools, which has enabled us to contribute to and influence the national approach.
“I very much expect LFL will be supplying even more schools over the next ten years.”
The operator is also celebrating the fact that one of its chefs, Tracy Dawson, reached the south-west regional final of LACA’s 2017 School Chef of the Year competition – for the second time.
Dawson said: “I am very proud and happy to have got through to the south-west regional final for the second time, and am very excited about it.
“The whole event was very thoroughly enjoyable, and I loved the experience of developing my own recipes and seeing them come to life.”
Local Food Links is an independent caterer and a not-for-profit social enterprise that supplies 3,000 meals a day to 33 schools in Dorset.
More than three quarters (78%) of ingredients are purchased from Dorset suppliers, and 95% from south-west suppliers.
Morgan said: “We will use local, seasonal fresh fruit and vegetables, wherever possible, and we won’t add salt, GM ingredients, undesirable additives or trans fats to any of our meals.”