The procurement and provision of healthy, sustainable food produced in line with fair work practices is a national policy objective, and the public procurement of food is expected to be a driver for systemic change in the food sector.
This case study sets out Scotland Excel’s development and evolution of a range of food and drink frameworks, worth a collective £83 million per annum. It demonstrates a focus on opportunities for local supply, which is one of a number of Scotland Excel’s important objectives, and describes challenges faced, approaches adopted, and lessons learned.
The intended audience for this case study comprises:
The Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022 supports the Scottish Government’s vision for Scotland to be ‘a Good Food Nation, where people from every walk of life take pride and pleasure in, and benefit from, the food they produce, buy, cook, serve, and eat each day’.
It places duties on Scottish Ministers, local authorities and regional health boards to produce Good Food Nation Plans.
The 2024 consultation on the Scottish Government’s Good Food Nation Plan sought feedback on its broad policy and views on improving the food system as well as aligning with broader goals of environmental sustainability, health and economic contributions. While feedback on the Plan is subject to consideration at the time of writing this case study, it sets out six national outcomes, these will be updated following Parliamentary scrutiny in 2025 before being finalised in late 2025:
The draft National Good Food Nation Plan defines food systems in line with the United Nations’ definition as “all the elements (environment, people, inputs, processes, infrastructures, institutions, etc.) and activities involved in the production, processing, distribution, preparation and consumption” of food.
The importance of promoting sustainable production and procurement of food and drink is set out here.
Food and drink served in schools is regulated by The Nutritional Requirements for Food and Drink in Schools (Scotland) Regulations 2020 (amended in 2023) as part of the effort to tackle childhood obesity. The Regulations are based on scientific evidence and dietary advice and, for example, set a maximum limit on the amount of red processed meat that can be consumed over the course of the school week.
The aim is to make school food healthier and increase the amount of fruit and vegetables served, whilst significantly reducing the amount of sugar available throughout the school day.
As long as the standards set out in the Regulations are met, school caterers may design menus which meet the needs and preferences of the children and young people they serve. The Regulations are supported by Statutory Guidance on Healthy Eating in Schools.
The Setting the Table guidance provides childcare providers with standards for food provision within early years childcare.
These regulations and guidance inevitably impact on relevant and proportionate, legally compliant food procurement, and sourcing of appropriate products.
Making the most of locally produced food is an important priority for local authorities and other public bodies and aligns with national outcomes relating to environmental sustainability and economic prosperity.
School meals, for example, provide daily healthy and nutritious meals. These support children’s wellbeing and their learning, while ‘fostering healthy and sustainable food behaviours and a positive relationship with food and its wider social, economic, and environmental significance’.
School food procurement can ‘help shape sustainable supply chains for the benefit of local businesses and communities as well as the environment’. (Nourish Scotland).
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The draft National Good Food Nation Plan defines food systems in line with the United Nations’ definition as “all the elements (environment, people, inputs, processes, infrastructures, institutions, etc.) and activities involved in the production, processing, distribution, preparation and consumption” of food. |
This may form part of a local authority’s community wealth building policy, supporting local jobs and businesses throughout supply chains.
To promote local and sustainable produce public bodies have the flexibility to:
This is in the context of:
