An online interactive seminar recently addressed the topic of The Changing Landscape of Public Food Procurement in Scotland, bringing together key players from across the Scottish public and third sector working on the procurement agenda.
It was jointly organised by Scotland Excel, Sustainable Food Places, ASSIST FM and supported by Food for Life Scotland staff.
More than 200 people registered to attend the event with representatives from all 32 Scottish local authorities, the Scottish Government, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) and Scotland Food and Drink among many others.
With the recent passing of the Good Food Nation Act combined with unprecedented turmoil in international supply chains, local sourcing and resilient supply chains have never been more important or more topical.
The event was chaired by Simon Kenton-Lake, Nourish Scotland, who kicked off by saying: “Public food procurement in Scotland is at a crossroads. We’ve got rising food prices, the threat of very real and very deep budget cuts and the biggest impact will be on bits of the budget that are not ring-fenced, such as school meals.
“We’ve also got a problem with food supply, and recent Scottish Government figures suggest a drop in procurement from Scottish producers and of Scottish produce itself since Covid. And these problems will have an effect on some of our most progressive policies such as the roll-out of universal free school meals.
"We are in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis, just at a time when the provision of one healthy and tasty meal for children every day should be right at the heart of our response to the crisis.
“A major shake-up with a highly ambitious plan for a new health service is coming in by the end of this parliament. But with great change comes great opportunity and we need to be thinking now about what we want to see on the future plates of those in our care.
“The new Good Food Nation Act has the power to truly transform the way we do food in Scotland, and food procurement is one of its cornerstones. We know that buying local food helps money stay in local economies - in fact it is multiplied.”
The role of local food in frameworks
Laura Muir of Scotland Excel explained that her organisation was funded by all 32 local authorities in Scotland and aimed to help councils meet their service responsibilities at a time of budget cuts.
She said: “We’ve got a portfolio of contracts valued at £2bn across transport, the environment, social care, construction, schools and ICT. Within that we have an £82m food framework covering milk, meat, frozen foods, bread, fruit and vegetables and local procurement has been a real focus in recent years, made even more important during the Covid lockdowns.”
She examples of how it was working. By switching to buying more local cheese, Scottish local authorities had boosted the Scottish cheese sector by £4.2m.
“Local procurement has grown every year for the past six years and now accounts for 37% of what we spend through all the frameworks, though that’s as high as 75% for meat. And to encourage smaller producers to get involved we are happy to split our frameworks into geographical lots.”
She added that Excel was also looking at dynamic food procurement and had been awarded funding by DPUK to conduct trials in Argyle and Bute on building local food networks and this.
“We’re starting out with a mapping exercise so we know who is out there to buy from. If successful, it will be scaled up and rolled out to other areas.”
Ambition 2030 & Local Food
John Davidson of Scotland Food & Drink said there had been ‘tremendous progress’ over the last ten years in getting more local produce on our menus and plates.
“We aim to raise the value of the food and drink sector to £30bn by 2030, which would represent a doubling of the current figure. However, in real terms there will be cuts in spending over the next few years so we need to focus on what we can control going forward.
“We are market-led and will put a focus on local food companies and helping them get a foothold in the public procurement.”
Like Laura Muir before him, Davidson referenced Food for Life Scotland as a key partner in this agenda and cited the Food for Life Served Here Award as a mechanism through which these goals could be achieved.
He was followed by a break-out session facilitated by Food for Life staff that saw lively discussion across the groups focused on best practice and opportunities for the future.
East Ayrshire’s Food Journey
Mark Hunter, strategic lead for food and facilities at East Ayrshire Council, said: “It’s about an investment in what you want to do locally. And we do see it as an investment, not a cost.”
Local Food Procurement
And Neil Beattie of Shetland Isles Council, which holds the Soil Association’s Food for Life Served Here award, highlighted how they had managed to increase local produce in schools through developing local networks and creating a more resilient supply chain.
Mapping Market Capacity
Helene Gourichon and Sandra Reid of South Lanarkshire Council spoke about their exciting work mapping opportunities to increase local sourcing into the council by identifying and speaking to local businesses about the perceived benefits and barriers to accessing this route to market.
What Next?
The final break out session of the event asked those attending about their willingness to take part in regular group discussions among stakeholders working on public procurement in Scotland. The consensus was that space for sharing ideas and best practice would be welcomed.