Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what his Department's policy is on the procurement of (a) food and (b) drinks produced in Britain for use in its canteens and restaurants.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government Property Agency (GPA) is responsible for the procurement of food and drink for canteens and restaurants in a number of government buildings across Britain, including Defra buildings.
Contractually, all suppliers appointed by GPA are required to comply with the Government Buying Standards, owned by Defra.
The relevant part of the standards is local and environmentally sustainable sourcing.
Wherever possible, food sourcing should prioritise locally produced food and food produced to higher environmental production standards. Contracting authorities and/or tier 1 suppliers should aim for at least 50% of food spend to be on locally produced food or food certified to higher environmental production standards. Progress towards this target must be reported annually.
This contractual provision will be monitored as part of the governance and report requirements of GPA's new contracts.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what his Department's policy is on the procurement of (a) food and (b) drinks produced in Britain for use in its canteens and restaurants.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) requires all external suppliers who provide food / drink goods or services across the MOJ estate to adhere by the Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services (GBS).
The GBS can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sustainable-procurement-the-gbs-for-food-and-catering-services/government-buying-standard-for-food-and-catering-services.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what his Department's policy is on the procurement of (a) food and (b) drinks produced in Britain for use in its canteens and restaurants.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government Property Agency (GPA) is responsible for the procurement of food and drink for canteens and restaurants in a number of government buildings across Britain, including Cabinet Office buildings.
Contractually, all suppliers appointed by GPA are required to comply with the Government Buying Standards, owned by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
The relevant part of the standards is local and environmentally sustainable sourcing.
Wherever possible, contracting authorities and/or tier 1 suppliers should aim for at least 50% of food spending to be on locally produced food or food certified to higher environmental production standards. Progress towards this target must be reported annually.
This contractual provision will be monitored as part of the governance and report requirements of GPA's new contracts.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what his Department's policy is on the procurement of (a) food and (b) drinks produced in Britain for use in its canteens and restaurants.
Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
DLUHC is a minor tenant in the majority of its offices, and as such does not directly procure food and drink for the canteens and restaurants in our offices. However, all food provided in our catering outlets is produced to UK standards and is local and in season, where possible. Food is sourced from farming systems that minimise harm to the environment, such as produce certified by LEAF, the Soil Association or Marine Stewardship Council. Fairly traded and ethically sourced products are also offered.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what his Department's policy is on the procurement of (a) food and (b) drinks produced in Britain for use in its canteens and restaurants.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The DWP’s FM supplier has investigated the sourcing of food and drink in its canteens and restaurants. They confirm that all food and drink has to meet the Government Buying Standards, as well as their catering sub-contractor’s (Compass) own non-negotiable standards that have to be met in relation to animal welfare and quality assurance.
In order to achieve this, Compass have a set of strict food sourcing standards that their suppliers have to adhere to. These are split up between:
• Dairy and eggs
• Fruit and Veg
• Animal Products
• Fish and Seafood
• Meat sourcing
• Grocery and Savoury
For instance, for dairy liquid milk they state it must be from British Origin and red tractor assurance. All our eggs are cage free (liquid and shell). All shell eggs are from the UK.
Compass have set the net zero target of 2030, so have banned air freight in their business.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what her Department's policy is on the procurement of (a) food and (b) drinks produced in Britain for use in its canteens and restaurants.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
DCMS does not own any canteens or restaurants. The canteen facilities we use are provided by our landlords, and we have no involvement in the provision of food and drink to those facilities. For our London headquarters, this is overseen by the Government Property Agency.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what her Department's policy is on the procurement of (a) food and (b) drinks produced in Britain for use in its canteens and restaurants.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
This information is not centrally held. The Government Property Agency are responsible for the procurement of food and drink for the Department for Business and Trade.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to protect children from unhealthy food and drink marketing.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to working with businesses to ensure that we create the conditions for a healthier nation, and we are implementing an ambitious programme of measures to tackle childhood obesity. On 1 October 2022, the Government introduced legislation to restrict the location of foods high in fat, salt, or sugar in shops and online.
On 1 October 2025, the volume price promotion restrictions will come into force, restricting volume price promotions such as three for two offers on less healthy products. The Government will simultaneously introduce a United Kingdom-wide 9:00pm television watershed for products high in fat, salt, or sugar, and a restriction of paid-for advertising of these products online, also on 1 October 2025. We continue to work with industry on the Food Data Transparency Partnership, to co-develop voluntary reporting requirements for food business to demonstrate the healthiness of their sales.
The Government, through its focus on prevention, is committed to improving the oral health of our young children through the Smile for Life programme, so that they have good habits by the time they start primary school.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department's policy is on the procurement of (a) food and (b) drinks produced in Britain for use in its canteens and restaurants.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Defence food purchasing contracts incorporate the requirements of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering (GBSF) Services. The GBSF has a focus on animal welfare, the quality and origin of food as well as nutrition advice, and these requirements are embedded within Defence Catering contracts. These contracts permit for local provision of food and/or drink where it is considered appropriate.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the proportion of ultra-processed foods in school meals.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
There is no universally agreed definition of ultra-processed foods. The term defines foods by how much processing they have been through rather than their nutritional composition.
The standards for school food are set out in The Requirements for School Food Regulations 2014. These regulations are designed to ensure that schools provide pupils with healthy food and drink options and to make sure that pupils have the energy and nutrition they need throughout the school day.
The ‘School Food Standards’ define the foods and drinks that must be provided, those which are restricted and those which must never be provided. The standards already restrict foods high in fat, salt and sugar, including crisps, confectionery and high-sugar drinks, as well as low quality reformed or reconstituted foods. They also ensure that the right foods are available for children every day. For example, one or more portions of fruit must be provided every day and at least three different fruits every week.
Compliance with the standards is mandatory for all maintained schools, academies and free schools. School governors and trustees have a responsibility to ensure compliance and should appropriately challenge the headteacher and the senior leadership team to ensure the school is meeting its obligations.
The department believes that the standards provide a robust yet flexible framework for school food provision. The government continues to keep the standards under review.