Leaders from across the education catering sector have called on government to ensure proposed school food standards are supported by adequate funding and practical implementation measures, warning that ambitious policy reforms risk becoming unworkable without greater investment.
The concerns were raised during Arena’s Feeding the Future: Rethinking Catering in Education event in London, where operators, suppliers, wholesalers and industry experts came together to discuss the future of school food and the pressures facing the sector.
While delegates expressed strong support for improving children’s nutrition and health, they highlighted an increasing gap between government expectations and the operational realities facing schools and catering providers.
Education caterers are now expected to deliver a broad range of services beyond preparing nutritious meals, including allergen management, sustainability initiatives, food education, social value programmes and wider wellbeing support, while continuing to operate within tightly constrained budgets.
Deborah Batchelor, Managing Director of Stir Food, said the sector fully supports improving children’s health but warned that future standards must balance nutritional ambition with the practical realities of school catering and pupil preferences to ensure meal uptake remains high.
Speakers also emphasised the wider role school meals play in supporting children’s health, educational attainment and overall wellbeing, particularly for pupils who rely on school lunches as a consistent source of daily nutrition.
Tracey Smith, CEO Schools & Universities at Sodexo UK & Ireland, said school catering teams contribute far beyond food provision, supporting children’s learning, development and welfare while acting as trusted members of school communities.
Industry representatives also highlighted the operational challenges of introducing new standards, particularly within secondary schools where large volumes of meals must be served within short lunch periods. Delegates stressed that future policies must reflect how school catering operates in practice if reforms are to be successful.
Meg Hughes, Director of Nutrition and Sustainability at Compass Education, acknowledged the importance of improving nutrition while noting that menu reformulation requires time to work with supply chains and develop meals that remain practical, appealing and commercially viable.
Panellists also warned of potential unintended consequences if new standards reduce participation in school meal programmes, with pupils instead choosing packed lunches or food purchased outside school.
Luke Consiglio, Founder and CEO of The Pantry, said the sector has made significant progress over the past decade in improving both the quality and perception of school meals, but cautioned that insufficient funding could undermine those achievements.
Alongside nutritional reform, the discussion explored wider challenges including food inflation, labour shortages, evolving regulations and growing expectations around sustainability and social value.
Nicola Knight, Head of Away From Home at IGD and host of the panel discussion, described education catering as sitting at the intersection of public health, education and foodservice, serving more than a billion meals annually while operating within some of the sector’s most demanding financial and operational conditions.
Despite these challenges, delegates agreed the sector remains committed to supporting healthier eating habits among children. However, there was broad consensus that lasting improvements will only be achieved through realistic funding, practical implementation plans and closer collaboration between government and the organisations delivering school meals every day.
Associated News
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