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Sustainable Food Procurement Initative - MoD increases purchase of UK meat

Case Study: MoD - increased purchase of UK meat

Region: National

Organisations: MoD’s Defence Catering Group, now known as the Defence Food Services Integrated Project Team (DFS IPT) with Meat and Livestock Commission (MLC) and Purple Foodservice Solutions (PFS)

Description:
The Ministry’s non-operational food supply contract is subject to the EU Public Procurement Regulations, which require advertising in the Official Journal of the European Union.

The terms of the Ministry’s current food supply contract mandate PFS to give full consideration to the supply of British products where they meet the necessary contract quality specifications, provide best value for money and meet the requirements for overseas supply.  

The Ministry continues to work with the MLC and the Red Meat Industry Forum to maximise the amount of British meat that can be supplied competitively.  Non-UK EU pork can be up to 10 per cent cheaper than UK pork (although the price fluctuates significantly with market demand).  Against an annual spend of some £2 million, savings could be realised from the purchase of non-UK pork; however, the Ministry considered the purchase of UK pork to represent better long term value because of the following points:

Benefits

  • The product meets the EU processing specifications.
  • The product meets the requirements necessary to export the product.
  • The UK has outlawed the use of tethering stalls for sows, meeting stricter animal welfare standards.
  • The security and reliability of surge supply was better guaranteed by purchasing the product for UK forces from the UK

Lessons learned during implementation

  • It has been necessary to look at the long-term benefits of buying British pork over Non-UK EU pork relating to both quality and availability.
  • As a result of frequent meetings between DFS IPT, the MLC and the food supply contractor, British lamb shoulder and thick rib beef have been added to a "core" list of products available to the Armed Forces.

Future developments
DSF IPT will continue to work in partnership with their food supply contractor to explore ways to increase the proportion of British meat that is supplied to UK Armed Forces.  Both the Ministry and PFS remain committed to buying meat from UK sources wherever they are competitive and meet the MOD quality requirements.

Further information
Website:
http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/MicroSite/DES/OurTeams/Joint/DefenceFoodServicesIpt.htm
Email: info@feedingtheforces.com

 

Page published: 4 May 2007

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs