Shetland schools achieve ‘Food for Life’ Award

The Food for Life Scotland programme is run by Soil Association Scotland, recognising schools that serve freshly prepared, healthy meals, made using locally produced and sustainable ingredients.  

Thirty-one school sites across Shetland, including early-years settings and primary and secondary schools, are now serving almost 2000 freshly prepared hot meals every day.

The Council is the 17th local authority in Scotland to achieve a ‘Food for Life Served Here’ Award and one of only a few to hold the award across all their education settings.

The award requires 75% of dishes on the menu to be classed as freshly prepared from unprocessed ingredients. The Council’s catering team have exceeded this, with the menu in local schools calculated to be 96% freshly prepared - one of the highest levels in Scotland.

Shetland Islands Council works closely with local suppliers to source local produce for school meals.  Meat is provided by two Shetland-based companies, Hughson Brothers and JW Gray; fresh fish is supplied by Blydoit Fish Ltd; and milk is supplied by Shetland Farm Dairies.  Island bakeries provide bread for schools and vegetables are sourced from local suppliers wherever possible. 

Councillor George Smith, Chair of the Council’s Education and Families Committee, said:  “This is well-deserved recognition for the work done by our school catering staff who provide healthy and nutritious meals in our schools and early years settings across the isles. We place great value on providing high quality school meals, and there are many benefits to providing locally-sourced produce too.

“I’m really pleased that Shetland schools have achieved this national accreditation and we’ll continue to strive to provide the best school meals we can for our young people.”  

Sarah Duley, Head of Food at Soil Association Scotland, said:  “Food for Life Scotland is delighted to recognise Shetland Islands Council’s ongoing commitment to serving fresh, local produce in their school meals.  The pandemic has further highlighted the importance of school meals and it is heartening to see the Council continue to take these steps to benefit local pupils, staff, and suppliers even while grappling with unprecedented challenges. 

Notes for Editors

• Soil Association Scotland is a sustainable food and farming charity working founded in 1946 to transform the way we eat, farm and care for the natural world.
• Food for Life Scotland is a Soil Association initiative which began in 2003 and developed into an award-winning national programme to transform school food culture.  In Scotland, the programme has been funded by Scottish Government since 2012.  Food for Life is a leading voice in the campaign for positive change in all areas of food and health.  

The Bronze ‘Food for Life Served Here’ standards are: 

• Meals comply with national standards or guidelines on food and nutrition  
• At least 75% of dishes on the menu are freshly prepared (on site or at a local hub kitchen) from unprocessed ingredients 
• All meat is from farms which satisfy UK animal welfare standards 
• No fish are served from the Marine Conservation Society ‘fish to avoid’ list 
• Eggs are from free range hens 
• No undesirable additives or artificial trans fats are used 
• No genetically modified ingredients are used 
• Free drinking water is prominently available 
• Menus are seasonal and in-season produce is highlighted 
• Information is on display about food provenance 
• Menus provide for all cultural and dietary needs 
• All suppliers have been verified to ensure they apply appropriate food safety standards 
• Catering staff are trained in fresh food preparation and understand how ‘Food for Life Served Here’ works