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Case studies of public sector institutions that offer Real Bread.
If you'd like to be added to this list to help inform and inspire others, please get in touch. We'd like to hear from any school, hospital, care home, prison, or other institution funded by the taxpayer, which buys in Real Bread from a local bakery, or bakes it from scratch in-house.
NB - many of the notes were written by the institutions themselves.
See also
Case studies.
February 2012
The Council produces school meals in eighty schools out of eighty-one within the local authority area. Of these, Real Bread rolls and baguettes are baked from scratch in sixty-six primary schools and twelve secondary schools.
In most of the primary schools, Real Bread is baked almost every day, and once a week in the secondary schools.
All of the Real Bread is made from scratch (i.e. not from mixes) using locally-milled flour, dried yeast, salt, margarine and sugar. [In February 2012 the Council has accepted an offer from the Campaign of a new recipe without this unnecessary added fat and sugar]
The total number of units produced per month across the area is approximately 18,000 in primaries and 1000 in secondaries.
Bread is included in the price of the meal in primaries, and either as part of a meal deal or priced separately in the secondaries.
The Council sees value in offering additive-free Real Bread, as this is in line with its aim of providing fresh, nutritionally balanced meals that are appetising to children.
Including bread making in the general training for new cooks adds to the skills it can offer to its 400 catering staff. The training is provided by more experienced of the cooks employed by the council.
The dough is mixed and kneaded in mixing machines and then proved in the hot cupboards that will later be used for keeping food warm during lunch service.
Total staff hours for each kitchen are determined by the number of meals provided. It is up to the manager of each kitchen to allocate this time to ensure all tasks are carried out. Bread making fits easily within this.
www.northlincs.gov.uk/NorthLincs/Education/schools/SchoolMeals/
March 2012
On 1 February 2011, Susanne Kent, a Catering Contract Monitoring Officer for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBK&C), met Real Bread Campaign co-ordinator at a Greenwich Co-operative Development Agency conference for teachers.
Their conversation helped to inform RBK&C’s decision to put Real Bread on the Menu at twenty one primary schools, three nursery/children’s centres, and two secondary schools in the borough - a total of twenty six sites. Susanne notes that the Campaign’s website ‘has also been a useful ongoing source of information.’ Criteria for the bread now include that it is organic, with reduced salt levels and no added sugar.
The contract to supply RBK&C’s schools is held by Alliance in Partnership (AiP), which specialises in catering for the education sector. In line the new specifications, AiP began to source organic, additive-free bread for the schools from Aston’s Organic Bakery, based about seven miles from the borough. AiP now works closely with Syd Aston to create bespoke recipes for bread and other baked goods, many of which include at least some wholemeal flour.
The types of Real Bread now offered are as follows:
The Real Bread order per school varies depending on the menu and number of children at each site, but on average each school uses six tin loaves a week to offer as slices alongside meals. AiP works to a set meal price and menu items, including all Real Bread, are included in the price.
AiP’s Group Development Chef Amy Teichman said: ‘I will admit that is was hard at first to get people on board with the organic bread. People are so used to eating loaves with so many chemical additives, they seem to have forgotten what Real Bread tastes like. There were some complaints because Syd’s bread does taste different - it tastes like actual bread. We worked really hard in conjunction with the borough council to educate people about the realities of the industrial loaves they had been eating, and now, it’s working really well. Syd’s expertise has been invaluable and where necessary, he’s changed recipes to help us find the perfect mix for our schools. The children are now enjoying great Real Bread and so it’s been worth the effort.’
On 15 March 2012, AiP and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea won the Real Bread Upper Crust award at the Good Food on the Public Plate Awards in recognition of this work.
allianceinpartnership.co.uk
astonsbread.co.uk
rbkc.gov.uk
Waltham Forest Catering (WFC), the council’s in-house catering service, is the main provider of school meals in the borough.
Are there any obstacles in particular that are holding the school back from baking more breads? - Time it takes is the issue.
Catering provided by Pabulum.
Thanks in part to the work of many Sustain member organisations and Sustain's own Good Food on the Public Plate project, many universities now have good food procurement policies that set (for example) ethical, environmental, health, community-support standards - or at least targets.
The following are those with explicit mention of one or more of our suggested bread criteria and therefore at least taking steps in what we see as the right direction.
If your policy is not listed, please email the details to realbread [at] sustainweb.org
March 2012
From University of East Anglia's Healthy and Sustainable Food Policy:
'We will work with our suppliers, on an ongoing basis, to introduce baked goods, including bread, which do not feature unnecessary ingredients and additives, and which contain controlled levels of salt in line with Food Standards Agency guidance, and remove those that do.'
March 2012
From University College London's Healthy and Sustainable Food Policy:
'We will work with our suppliers to introduce baked goods, including bread, which do not feature high levels of unnecessary ingredients including salt and additives.'
January 2012
From Loughborough University's Sustainable Food Policy:
'At present we are reviewing our bread products with a view to identifying whether we can remove any unnecessary ingredients and additives*, and reducing the levels of salt in line with Department of Health guidance**. This review will be completed by 2013.'
* As defined by the Real Bread Campaign https://www.sustainweb.org/realbread/what_is_real_bread/
** Reference www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Goodfood/Pages/salt.aspx
December 2011
From University of Worcester's Sustainable Food Action Plan:
'At least 50% of meat and meat products, breads, breakfast cereals, soups and cooking sauces, ready meals and pre-packed sandwiches (procured by volume) meet Responsibility Deal salt targets and all stock preparations are lower salt varieties (i.e. below 0.6g/100mls)'
March 2011
From Staffordshire University's Healthy & Sustainable Food Policy notes:
'We will work with our suppliers, on an ongoing basis, to introduce baked goods, including bread, which do not feature unnecessary ingredients and additives*, and which contain controlled levels of salt in line with Food Standards Agency guidance, and remove those that do.'
* As defined by the Real Bread Campaign https://www.sustainweb.org/realbread/what_is_real_bread/
February 2011
From University of Gloucestershire's Sustainable Food Policy:
' As a leading sustainability institution the university is holding an increasing number of forums and conferences that need to reflect best practice. For these events the requirement will be;
[...]
Local or homemade bread.
[...]
Organic - if appropriate.
Original menus introducing new, local foods will be expected. Clear labelling focusing on provenance is important as well as catering staff involved with a function being fully briefed on the food being served.'
November 2010
From Bournemouth University's Sustainable Food Procurement Policy:
'We will aim to ensure that local or regional products are regularly available from at least two of the following categories, where possible:
[...]
6. Bread
However, value for money, price competitiveness, quality and sector factors, will necessarily be part of these considerations.'
Many more universities have good food policies.
Sadly, though some have relevant aims or commitments (e.g. sourcing from local and/or SME suppliers, reduced salt, organic ingredients etc.), we have yet to find more that have standards specifically mentioning bread.
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