FOI Request - Production and Supply of Food in Council Buildings
Request 101003380700
Information held by your Council about the food production methods and catering procedures employed within the Council’s catering establishments.
For the purposes of clarity, I am referring, primarily, to food supplied in schools; but, where applicable, if the Council has other catering offerings (such as cafés in museums, meals-on-wheels provision for social care, or staff restaurants), I would be pleased if you would include them.
## Food Production Methods:
1. Does the Council produce food for its catering outlets in-house? If so, please clarify whether this is carried out on a central site (e.g., central production unit), or within each individual site. If there is a mixture of both, please clarify, where possible [1].
2. If food is not produced in-house, please provide details on whether it is produced by a third-party facilities contractor (e.g., under a PFI agreement), or purchased from external sources, in frozen (or chilled) format.
## Recipe and Cooking Method Information:
3. In the event that the Council produces food in-house, please supply a copy of the recipes, and cooking / preparation methods utilised by the catering department for standardised food items. I would imagine that this information would be readily available, owing to standardisation of menu items [2].
This would include information on ingredients, preparation steps, cooking temperatures, and any relevant nutritional considerations (e.g., it might be noted on menus that certain items are suitable for those on restricted diets, or that some menu items have specific allergens).
4. If you do not produce food in-house, please confirm whether you hold standardised information as to what items are available (e.g., menus, and nutritional / allergen information), and supply a copy, where possible.
[1] for example, schools may well use a "hub-and-spoke" model, where a kitchen in a larger school supplies food, either in hot, or chilled form, for schools in its area. Alternatively, a cook freeze supply-and-reheat operation might be in place.
[2] e.g., to comply with the Food and Drink in Schools (Scotland) Regulations 2020: https://www.gov.scot/publications/healthy-eating-schools-guidance-2020/
Response 13-09-2023
1. There are production kitchens (larger kitchens) that are within schools that provide meals for smaller schools (that we class as a servery). The same menu is provided that all other schools receive, i.e. Primary menu.
2. N/A.
3. Due to the size of the file, this information has been sent to the requester directly..
4. N/A.