Hospital food gets boost from Catering Mark

Seventeen UK hospitals are working with the Soil Association (SA) to include more local and seasonal products on their menus under its Food For Life Catering Mark.

Speaking at the Improving Hospital Food Conference in Nottingham on 11 March, the SA’s Catering Mark manager Mike Bond said the scheme was bringing about “meaningful change” in NHS procurement policy and improving the quality and nutritional content of millions of patient meals in the absence of mandatory government buying standards.

It had not only shown that local producers could deliver food at the same or lower prices, but studies by think tank the New Economics Foundation demonstrated that for every £1 spent under the scheme, £3 was generated in the communities hospitals served.

Since last year, 90 organic and non-organic suppliers have signed up to the Catering Mark’s assured supplier scheme, from family-run livestock farms to some of the UK’s largest vegetable growers.

Mr Bond said the SA had taken a deliberate decision not to insist caterers use organic, and in doing so was creating new marketing opportunities for all producers.

To meet the basic standard, caterers must supply Red Tractor assured raw and processed meat; free-range eggs; seasonal, local fresh produce, where possible; and products that are GM-free.

Mr Bond added: “To see significant change in scale you have to acknowledge the starting point of some of these catering organisations. That said, the Bronze Mark is still a significant achievement. “

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