A 12-month pilot project – The Hackney Organic School Food project – is enabling Hackney school children to consume 100% organic fruit and vegetables in their school meals.
The project is a collaboration between Sustain’s Bridging the Gap campaign, partner Growing Communities and head chef James Taylor who works across Sir Thomas Abney and Harrington Hill primary schools in Hackney.
Both schools will be buying organic produce supplied by Growing Communities’ wholesale arm, the Better Food Shed, during the project, which aims to show how schools can create healthier, more sustainable meals while simultaneously opening up new routes to market for nutritious organic, climate-friendly food from local producers.
“This pilot will enable us to demonstrate how schools and other public sector organizations can access climate-friendly food that builds community wellbeing, reduces emissions and tackles waste from the farm level upwards, as well as generating more income for climate and nature-friendly farmers,” explains Zosia Walczak, pilot lead and senior manager at Growing Communities.
“It’s been one of my dreams to be able to use affordable, locally farmed organic produce in my primary schools”
Since September 2023, Taylor has been buying most of the fruit and veg for the two primary schools from Growing Communities, switching 60% of his procurement away from conventional suppliers to organic. And by serving more plant-based seasonal meals and putting low-cost pulses from Hodmedod’s on the menu, he’s seen no increase in budget. However, this new scheme will enable him to increase the quantity of organic fruit and vegetables he uses in school meals to 100%.
“It’s been one of my dreams to be able to use affordable, locally farmed organic produce in my primary schools and thanks to Growing Communities, it’s finally happening,” Taylor comments.
“It’s brilliant to be working with Growing Communities and James Taylor on the Hackney Organic School Food pilot,” says Hannah Gibbs, Bridging the Gap programme manager, Sustain, says. “Public sector food procurement is key to increasing access to organic for everyone. This pilot will help us to demonstrate the simple steps that can be taken to get us there.”
The schools will also integrate nature-friendly food and farming into lessons and the children will visit Growing Communities’ organic growing sites in Hackney to see first-hand where food comes from.
The pilot, which runs until May 2025, is part of a UK-wide series to demonstrate the policies and financial mechanisms needed to ‘bridge the gap’.
Image credit: Growing Communities