Schools: Food
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support schools to source (a) fresh and (b) seasonal food produced in the UK.
Answered by Stephen Morgan
The department is acting quickly with experts across the sector to revise the school food standards, so every school is supported with the latest nutrition guidance. We are currently engaging with stakeholders on the school food standards to help us understand the challenges around school food.
Schools are responsible for their school meals service and how and where they choose to buy their produce. Schools can voluntarily follow the government's buying standards.
Additionally, the National Procurement Policy Statement, published in February 2025, underscores the government's commitment to increasing the procurement of food that meets higher environmental standards and upholding ethical sourcing practises across public sector contracts, which we believe our high quality British producers are well-placed to meet.
Alongside this, the government’s wider food strategy will create a healthier, fairer, and more resilient food system, boosting our food security, improving our health, ensuring economic growth, and delivering environmental sustainability.
As with all aspects of the school food standards review, the department will review our guidance and consider our approaches to procurement of UK-grown produce.
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