They tackled the lack of funding that is currently threatening caterers’ ability to deliver meals to mandated standards, how the sector should frame the argument for more Government support in terms of the social, economic and health benefits of public sector meals, and whether the industry needs to move away from the negative ‘eat less meat’ message to talk more about what is added to meals, such as pulses and lentils, rather than what is taken out.
Jayne Jones, chair of the Public Sector Catering Alliance, made the case for the creation of an All-Party Parliamentary Group on Public Sector Catering to provide a better focus for issues that work across the whole sector.
Summing up the discussion, she said: “Some of the key messages from my perspective are how can we use data more effectively to build our arguments and how do we leverage the opportunity of new political leadership.
“I really liked Nadim’s [Ednan-Laperouse] provocation of moving from defence to attack. Health and wellbeing is very much what binds us all, so we should be focusing on that. How do we re-frame the narratives around our menu development be those plant-based and how we introduce them.”
She then highlighted three Scottish exemplar initiatives to make her point. These were the Full of Beans campaign in Glasgow, Peas Please introducing organic peas onto school menus, and a pilot in Argyle and Bute where they have introduced local venison onto school plates.
Those attending representing a variety of sectors including schools, universities, hospitals, care homes, prisons and catering colleges. The ‘Most Influential’ list included:
- Judith Gregory, chair of LACA
- Iain Robertson, chair of HCA
- Amanda Pettingill, chair of TUCO
- Neel Radia, chair of NACC
- Nicky Joiner, chair of ASSIST FM
- Molly Shaher, chair of PACE
- Jayne Jones, chair of PSC Alliance
- Alexia Robinson, founder Love British Food
- Anna Taylor, executive director Food Foundation
- Denise Bean, head of catering at HM Prison Service
- Nadim & Tanya Ednan-Laperouse, Natasha Allergy Research Foundation
- Karen Beech, Crown Commercial Service
- Tom Bradshaw, president of the National Farmers Union
- Phil Shelley, NHS England
- Prof Kevin Morgan, public sector catering academic
- Prof Don Bundy, academic finding the evidence for the benefits of school meals
- Mo Baines, director of APSE
- Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London
- Robin Mills, chief executive, Compass Group UK & Ireland
- Katie Pettifer, interim chief executive of the Food Standards Agency
The roundtable debate was made possible by the following Public Sector Catering Alliance sponsors: Bidfood, Brakes, Civica, Essential Cuisine, Falcon, Hobart, Major, Meiko, Panasonic, Premier Foodservice, Radnor Hills, Unilever Food Solutions, Unox, Valentine and Cuisine Equip, Wafflemeister, Williams, Winterhalter and Young’s Foodservice.
A full report of the roundtable debate will be available in Public Sector Catering’s next magazine issue, which will be made available online from Friday 7th February.
