As UK food supply is under threat, a new report from Sustain says that investing in organic school programmes can support local farmers, build up regional supply chains and reduce climate impacts of food production.

Against a backdrop of war, supply chain disruption and extreme weather, the Bridging the Gap report highlights how public sector food is one of the biggest commercial levers available to government to build local economic resilience, while also bringing significant health, wellbeing and environmental benefits.

The report says that integrating more organic fruit and veg into school meals could drive a substantial market for UK growers. Supporting small and medium-sized suppliers to access £5 billion per year worth of public sector contracts would keep profits in local communities and boost economic resilience, the report shows.   

The research shines a light on three school pilots located in Scotland, England and Wales and argues that these regional pilots can be replicated and scaled up for the rest of the UK. Involving nature-friendly farmers, local businesses and public school caterers, the school pilots demonstrated that increased public investment not only supported local farmers but also led to over 75,000 children, a third of whom living in low income communities, eating organic fruit and veg in their school meals. 

This new report follows on from the first Bridging the Gap findings published by Sustain in December, which showed benefits for local communities when boosting access and availability of organic fruit and veg in retail settings, such as farmers’ markets and local shops. The report found that for every £1 public investment, matched with £1.10 from shoppers,  £8.78 was delivered in returns for local areas. 

This latest study focusses on just the three school pilots and shows that the return on investment jumps to almost £10. The report found getting more organic fruit and veg from local farmers onto school plates generated £9.46 for local economies, health and environment with every £1 of added investment. .Greater community engagement generated through farm visits and shorter supply chains helped boost these projected returns.  

In Wales, the Welsh Veg in Schools pilot rebuilt a local supply base by connecting small organic growers with school catering contracts. Half of the 24 local authorities in Wales joined the initiative, whilst support and investment from suppliers such as Castell Howell ensured growers could access large catering contracts and remained part of the supply chain in the long term.  

In Aberdeen, Scotland, the Give Peas a Chance! project introduced locally grown organic split peas into school meals. Thanks to investment in supply chain facilitator Soil Association Scotland, stakeholders across this new supply chain convened to troubleshoot blockers and maximise the opportunity.  New recipes such as chocolate pea muffins and a mince–pea blend proved popular with children and reduced emissions by 42%, encouraging nearby Moray Council to also take up the scheme. 

In London, two primary schools partnered with Growing Communities to source organic produce from local farmers in South East England. The pilot offered the schools the opportunity to swap their non-organic imported veg with local supplies and introduced the children to seasonal vegetable dishes using taste-testing and food education. 

At a time of the UK’s increased vulnerability to shocks in global supply chains brought on by climate change and war, as well as its high dependency on imported fruit and veg, the UK is at even greater risk of food shortages and increased food prices. A government reportNational Security Assessment published last month also warned degradation of habitats and ecological collapse pose a threat to national security and public health, unless we change the way we produce food. 

The Bridging the Gap report lays out how these pilots can be scaled up to meet these challenges. With public procurement contracts worth £5 billion a year, the report argues this money should be invested in British agroecological farmers, which would also help fulfil the government’s commitment to 50% local or sustainable food served in public settings such as schools, hospitals and prisons.