A round-up of the latest news from the contract catering sector…
Scolarest picks up £2.4m Newcastle schools contract
Education caterer Scolarest has won a four-year contract to provide catering services to 4,000 pupils at six schools in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. The contract has an annual turnover of £600,000. The schools are currently being rebuilt through a PFI partnership and pupils will move into the new buildings over the next 18 months.
Eurest wins hostel bid
Compass Group’s business and industry arm, Eurest, has won a three-year contract with the Youth Hostel Association for England and Wales. The £250,000-a-year contract will see Eurest providing catering services at seven of the association’s 228 hostels. Eurest will cater for 400,000 visitors a year at five central London youth hostels, and for 73,000 people a year at the YHA Oxford and YHA Cambridge. The caterer will employ 50 staff across the seven sites.
RAF swaps sarnies for stylish dining
Civil servants at RAF Wyton near Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire have swapped sandwiches for a new restaurant. Eurest Defence Support Services have just opened a new 125-seat restaurant at the RAF base. The Skyways restaurant is open to the 3,000 people who work on the base.
Caterers to join government in tackling environmental issues
Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Margaret Beckett this week announced the creation of a new body to develop a Food Industry Sustainability Strategy. The body, which will be made up of caterers, food manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers, will tackle issues such as pollution, litter, transport and energy use within the food and drink industry.