A recipe for success for Orkney’s school catering team

Orkney’s school catering team has achieved the Food for Life Served Here (FFLSH) award for the fifth consecutive year.

The Food for Life Scotland programme, run by the Soil Association Scotland and funded by the Scottish Government, aims to help school catering staff serve freshly prepared meals made from locally produced ingredients that are healthy and sustainable.

The Orkney team, who have been recertified with the Bronze award, have been part of a growing movement of caterers committed to serving food that is good for the climate, nature and young people’s health.

The certification is an independent endorsement, backed by annual inspections, for food providers who are taking steps to improve the food they serve.

The catering team serve up around 2,000 hot and nutritious meals daily to pupils across Orkney’s 21 schools and 20 nurseries.

The Council’s Service Manager for Corporate Catering, Scott Pring, said: “As always, the reaccreditation of this award is down to the significant and ongoing efforts of all staff involved in maintaining the high standard. We are also grateful to the fantastic local suppliers for the quality produce that we are able to source on our doorstep.

“It’s a lot of work being part of the programme, but the benefits are passed directly onto our children and young people through the offer of freshly prepared meals that we know are healthy and sustainable. This is also about trying to instil good eating habits from a young age that we know are so important in terms of a healthy onward lifestyle.”

The Food for Life Served Here award recognises councils that are serving school meals which are made from fresh ingredients, use free-range eggs and higher welfare meat, and are free from genetically modified ingredients and undesirable additives.

Sarah Duley, Head of Food, Food for Life Scotland, said: “We would like to congratulate Orkney Islands Council for renewing their Food for Life Served Here Bronze Award for another year. This is a huge achievement and shows that staff are dedicated to providing pupils with a meal that’s healthy, freshly prepared and sustainably produced.

“The importance of shopping local is highlighted across the menu; from Williamson’s for Orkney-reared beef to milk sourced from Crantit Dairies, and even their very own Beremeal from Barony Mill, an ancient grain very unique to Orkney. A fantastic achievement in itself and we applaud Orkney Islands Council for this work.”

Councillor Gwenda Shearer, Chair of Orkney Islands Council’s Education, Leisure and Housing Committee, said: “Despite the ongoing financial challenges that all local authorities face, the award is testament to the worth that is placed by this Council on continuing to deliver first-class meals, with the help of local suppliers, to our children and young students.

“As we remain in the grip of a cost-of-living crisis, it’s never been more important for our team to deliver a hot and nutritious school meal to those most in need and they continue to do this whilst reaching Scottish Government standards around nutrition and energy compliance.

“Well done to all involved in maintaining such a high standard.”