Innovate Services, a catering facilities operator to the education sector, has responded to an interview Jamie Oliver gave on BBC Breakfast this morning, which focused on his concern that we could face an “erosion” of healthy school meal standards as a result of new academies not being required to follow the nutritional school meal guidelines that are currently in place for state-run secondary schools.
Derick Martin, CEO of Innovate Services, said: “Over the last few years, attitudes have changed regarding school catering and we are never going to see a return of Turkey Twizzlers on the menu as a result. There are a number of reasons for this – the nutritional guidelines have of course made a difference overall, but also we believe that attitudes have significantly changed among not only school staff and catering operators, but also among students themselves who are far more health conscious today.
“There is also a duty for caterers, principals and senior leadership teams at academies to ensure the menus remain healthy, despite their freedom from the guidelines.
Martin continued: “At Innovate, we operate in over 65 schools and academies throughout the UK, from Hull to Plymouth, including all the major new west London academies. Not only are we seeing high uptake of school food, but also the number of plated hot meals served is higher than average. We are committed to delivering healthy meals at all the sites we operate.”
Source: Innovate Services
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024