For over 60 years, Brakes UK has been a leading wholesaler in the British foodservice industry, known for its reliability, sustainability, and innovation across sectors such as healthcare, education, hospitality, and care homes.
As an official partner of Love British Food, Brakes shares a commitment to promoting local and seasonal produce. It’s a focus that comes to life during British Food Fortnight, the annual celebration of British food with an emphasis on sustainable procurement across the food supply chain.
Amid procurement influences such as rising costs and workforce pressures, Cathy Amos, head of customer marketing at Brakes and non-executive director for Love British Food, advises care home caterers not overlooking fresh UK ingredients.
“There’s always an extensive range of in-season produce to choose from and swapping to British-sourced ingredients can not only be a cost-effective option but also deliver a wide range of benefits,” she says. “Brakes spotlight seasonal British produce throughout the year and our collaborative ‘Best of British’ initiative with Fresh Direct UK really puts these fantastic ingredients at the front of it all.”
Cathy also explains how getting British ingredients into care home catering is an important mission for them.
“Our passion is in making British food at its best, the healthy sustainable choice and we want public sector and care home caterers to have the tools they need to create menus which reflect seasonal ingredients and support British farming,” she says.
The company’s recent acquisition of Fairfax Meadow, a leading UK catering butcher, further enhances their British sourcing capabilities, offering care homes and foodservice providers access to high-quality British meats alongside fresh produce.
This holistic approach provides public-sector and care-home caterers with the inspiration and ingredients needed to deliver menus bursting with provenance, sustainability, and seasonal appeal.
This dedication was evident at The Great British Food Showcase, hosted by Fresh Direct in October 2025. The event brought together chefs, caterers, and buyers from a range of sectors, to discuss how to increase British sourcing across menus.
Focused on education, transparency, and storytelling, the showcase highlighted the importance of using seasonal, locally sourced ingredients to meet the needs of consumers and public-sector catering organisations.
Cathy says: “This event captured the essence of Love British Food – collaboration across the entire supply chain. The conversations were honest, encouraging and full of practical ideas about how we tell our stories better.
“There is a mounting pressure on foodservice and public-sector organisations to source locally and reduce carbon footprints, and this event has pinpointed the need to balance quality with practicality.”
Using British ingredients is an effective way to reduce food miles and have a positive impact on carbon footprint.
Ian Nottage, head of food development at Fresh Direct says: “If we want more British food on menus, we’ve got to start with education, giving chefs, catering teams and customers the understanding and knowledge to champion British produce every day, telling the quality, taste and sustainability stories in ways that resonate.”
For the National Association of Care Catering (NACC), industry-wide collaborations help provide their care home caterers with resources to deliver great food that promotes well-being and meets the diverse dietary needs of residents.
Training events such as the NACC Training & Development Forum where Brakes UK development chef Danny Silcock, gave a masterclass, provided members with the tools they need to introduce British food onto their menus.
The positive effect of this type of collaborative activity is particularly notable during events such as British Food Fortnight. Over many years the NACC has actively encouraged its members to participate in the campaign creating engaging and nostalgic experiences through themed meals, cooking activities and storytelling.
Additional support for care-home caterers is also provided through accredited nutritional training, IDDSI guidance, and menu planning support to ensure care homes can cater to residents’ dietary needs while delivering delicious British-inspired meals.
Last year the Government stated its ambition to change procurement rules to improve the share of public sector food sourced from UK farms to around 50%. Although not mandatory, it represents a direction of travel that is likely to influence wider public provision by raising the expectations placed on care homes. Instilling this level of change needs to start at a grassroots level.
The opportunity for care home caterers to attend on-farm training days – to see how, where and why our food is grown – is invaluable. Through its changemaker programme, Love British Food continues to bridge the knowledge gap by introducing public sector caterers to Britain’s pioneering farmers who champion sustainable agriculture.
Cathy concludes: “Provenance and responsible sourcing are crucial, and we are proud to lead the way in championing British produce within the public care sector.
“Supporting British farmers and providing healthy, local food to care home residents has never been more important. Becoming a Love British Food changemaker is an ideal first step on a rewarding and important journey.”