In practice the 400 orders from schools during term time will go daily to 250 outlets in the Leeds City Council area from growers.
A co-operative company has been formed called Public Sector Produce Supplies (PSPS), with Graham Ward of Snaith Salads as chairman, and Simon Dobson of Greenfield Produce in Wakefield as managing director.
His company will undertake the packing and distribution.
Members of the company will be responsible for sourcing English/EU products in their sector, with, for example, Snaith Salads procuring and supplying iceberg lettuce. Growers will deliver their ordered supplies to Greenfield Produce and the orders to schools will be undertaken by Igloo, which recently won funding from the television programme ‘Dragon’s Den’ for this project.
The contract will be for one year with an extension for another 12 months if everything is satisfactory.
There had been an increasing belief that growers themselves could supply a fresher range of salads and vegetables from their farms in Yorkshire and Humberside than those being supplied through the traditional wholesale market supply chain. In many peoples’ view, quality standards in particular had slipped over the years in direct contrast with heightened government and industry efforts. This included the work being undertaken by Michael Holmes in his attempts to raise grower awareness of the benefits of them becoming involved in public sector sourcing.
According to Graham Ward much of the impact has come from city councils in the north, the industry itself and the government’s public procurement initiative.
The administration has been co-ordinated by Rebecca Roberts and Sally Scantlebury of FEASTnet, based in Skipton and the Midlands.
“It is wonderful to win this contract and to know children will be getting their fresh produce in a shorter time from local Yorkshire and Humberside growers,” said Roberts, whose company promotes regional foods, She explained that she had been invited to a Defra procurement meeting at which both Graham Ward and Michael Holmes also attended and struck up a business relationship.
The growers involved along with Greenfield Produce and Snaith Salads are Humber VHB as the salads suppliers; G.Poskitt and S.T. Holmes, Owston Ferry, Doncaster, D.Westwood & Son, Thorpe, Wakefield, (brassicas), Greyfriars Ltd, Rippon, (mushrooms and sweet corn), Metcalfe’s, Boroughbridge (organic roots and potatoes), with top fruit of apples and pears, yet to be nominated.
“We had three people from Leeds City Council out to Snaith and the Greenfield facilities and they were amazed by our professional commitment to quality,” said Ward, who added that a great deal had to be done to bring the service up to the proper standards.
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