In early January several of our Procurement for Good project partners participated in The Great School Dinner Debate.

In early January several of our Procurement for Good project partners participated in The Great School Dinner Debate. The event convened some of the most influential voices promoting food procurement system change to begin to establish a clear and widely supported set of recommendations for Government.

Project partners Social Farms and Gardens, Propagate/Galloway Food Hub, Growing Communities and the Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience at Coventry University, took part in the event which was held at St Ebbe’s Primary School in Oxford and hosted by the Soil Association. The debate was sparked by the UK Government commitment to develop a new, ambitious food strategy in 2025 and to serve more British, local and sustainable food in schools, hospitals, and other public settings.  

The event brought together experts and pioneers from across the farm-to-fork spectrum – farmers and growers, supply chain and procurement professionals, caterers and head teachers – to delve into the pressing issue of school meals with a special focus on England. Participants expressed their hope that the new government pledge will provide an opportunity both to enhance school meal quality and to channel public money into the pockets of British farmers who use sustainable production methods.

The debate kicked off with an inspiring keynote by Professor Kevin Morgan from Cardiff University who said that “access to good food is the litmus test of a society’s commitment to social justice and sustainable development”. In order to fix the public food system, he highlighted the need for a holistic approach that considers the entire public food ecosystem rather than focusing narrowly on public food procurement. This approach recognises, for example, that to improve the quality of food served on the public plate, we also need a vibrant and sustainable horticultural sector in the UK. He also flagged the need for mandatory national food standards in the public sector. While there are excellent local initiatives, such as the Soil Associations’ Food for Life awards, these are optional and depend on the good will of public institutions.

Following the keynote, participants enjoyed a special school dinner: spaghetti Bolognese (vegetarian and meat options) and a delicious apple crumble with custard prepared with local, organic produce by the Oxfordshire County Council's catering team.

At dinner, the organisers invited guests to engage with fellow participants seated at their table and share ideas on transforming school food.  Some of the suggestions that emerged in the lively conversations feature in the School Food Review formulated by an alliance of charities, unions and catering companies as well as in the BeanMeals toolkit recently published by the Sustainable Food Places network.

The evening drew to a close with an inspiring panel discussion which added further food for thought to insights shared in the cosy school canteen. Providing a glimpse into the local context, we heard about a successful local short food supply chain initiative that enables Oxford University Colleges to source sustainable food directly from local, agroecological producers through the OxFarmToFork digital platform. Closing remarks from Naomi Duncan, Chief Executive of Chefs in Schools, a charity that works to improve food and food education in schools across the country, paid tribute to dedicated chefs and caterers at the front line of school meals and reminded us of the challenges they face.

We look forward to continuing the conversation and supporting collective action for an environmentally sustainable and socially just public food procurement system across the UK!

For further inspiration, please see Kevin Morgan's new book "Serving the Public: the good food revolution in schools, hospitals and prisons" which is available to buy now! The book draws on over 20 years of research into public food systems in and beyond the UK and it is addressed to a wide audience.

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