Academy of Culinary Arts
ARAMARK
British Culinary Federation
Compass Group
Country Markets Ltd
Craft Guild of Chefs
Marston’s Pub Company
Master Chefs of Great Britain

Mitchells & Butler
Orchid Pub Group
Professional Association for Catering Education
Punch Taverns
Sodexo
Women’s Institute
Youth Hostel Association

“British Food Fortnight’s initiative sending chefs into schools is an invaluable way of teaching the next generation and we have loved being a part of it.”
Dave Myers & Simon King, BBC’s ‘Hairy Bikers’ celebrity chefs who gave children at Wilson’sEndowed C.E. School, Lancashire a cooking lesson during British Food Fortnight.

“British Food Fortnight gives caterers a reason to be enthused about quality British food and caterers who have taken part in the event should continue to put British food on their menus throughout the year.”
Bob Cotton, CEO,British Hospitality Association

“British Food Fortnight is a key business-building opportunity for pubs.”
Alan Todd, Catering Development, Punch Taverns

“Any pub failing to make plans for British Food Fortnight may want to rethink that decision.”
The Publican

“British Food Fortnight is an ideal catalyst for finding new suppliers and sourcing more sustainably. Hospitals, schools and staff restaurants putting British on the menu during the even thave proved it is possible to source locally.”
Mark Holmes, ADAS, who helped Sheffield Teaching Hospitals source locally as part of the White Rose Red Meat Initiative.

 “British Food Fortnight provides a fantastic opportunity to build on current initiatives with the support of a nationally recognised and supported event. Campaigns like British Food Fortnight work.”
Tim Kershaw, MD Libra Europeconsultants to the food supply chain industry

“British Food Fortnight is a fabulous idea.  We should celebrate British food 12 months of the year.”
Michael Caines, Michelin-star celebrity chef

“Every year more andmore restaurants, pubs and chefs get involved.”
The Observer

How caterers can take part in British Food Fortnight

• Put British food and drink on your menu during the Fortnight.  Try running special promotions or a British Food Fortnight menu with all dishes sourced regionally.
• Tell your local newspaper and radio stations what you are doing. 
• Decorate your establishment with bunting and display the British Food Fortnight poster (available from the Event Office).
• Monitor customer response.  If well received, run similar activities long term.
• Tell the organisers of British Food Fortnight what you are organising.  To have your restaurant or pub listed on the website and included in information to the media, please contact the Event Office on E: info@britishFood Fortnight.co.uk T: 020 7840 9292

Advice for pubs and restaurants

Advice for food service organisations

Put British food on your menu

• Contact your suppliers and ask whether the produce they currently supply you with is British. 
• Use British Food Fortnight as an opportunity to experiment with new dishes on your menu; chefs that do so end up keeping the dish on there for the rest of the winter.
• Set yourself a target of at least five locally sourced dishes on your menu. 
• Make simple dishes special by sourcing British: Soup of the Day and Bangers and Mash are easy to localise. 
• Challenge chefs to come up with ‘Chef’s Specials’ that highlight local produce.  For example, a ‘Steak & Ale-of-the-DayPie’ draws attention to the range of ales on sale in the bar and a dish thatuses a local cheese will stimulate interest in your cheese board.
• Be open to working with new suppliers.  Your customers maybe able to suggest local producers whose produce they would like to see onyour menu.

Highlight British food on your menu

• Adapt your existing menu or create a special board focusing on British or local produce.
• Use generic phraseson your menu that give customers enough information about what they are ordering but still give you flexibility to introduce new products: forexample, ‘Chef’s Special’, ‘XYZ served with Seasonal Vegetables’ or ‘Seasonal Fruit Crumble’.
• Name producers andfarms rather than simply use the term ‘local’ on your menu.  If it is difficult to specify producers byn ame then use generic phrases such as ‘All the meat served comes within 30 miles of this pub/restaurant’. 
• List suppliers,their contact details and even the number of food miles separately in orderto keep the wording on the menu simple and clear. 

Use British Food Fortnight as a catalyst for building long term opportunities

• Use British Food Fortnight to increase Christmas bookings: pubs and restaurants offering special menus during the event report an increase in bookings as the Fortnight is an opportunity to give customers confidence in the quality of food they can expect. 
• Launch a retailservice to complement your menu sales: ready-made meals for take-aways or freezer storage.

Tell people what you are doing

• Organise an event to which you can invite journalists and that will make you stand out from other pubs and restaurants wanting media coverage. For example, you could offer a cooking demonstration of the dishes on your menu. 
• Invest in quality photographs of your dishes to maximise press coverage.  The media is more likely to feature your restaurant and menu if you are able to supply them with quality photographs. 

Source British food

• Contact your existing suppliers to see whether the produce they currently supply you with is British. 
• Contact the large producer organisations for a list of British meat, dairy and vegetable suppliers that can cater for large food service sourcing requirements.  Contact details on www.britishfoodfortnight.co.uk.
• Send current and newsuppliers a copy of the menu you would like them to supply British food for and invite them to pitch for the business.
• Don’t be put off byprices that initially may seem higher. Buying large volumes can make the whole process affordable.
• If you are catering in the public sector, consider forming a partnership with other public organisations to aggregate demand and make savings through bulk purchase.
• Larger suppliers canstill provide local produce; be specific when talking to them about what you want and don’t shy away from specifying local products as part of your requirements. 
• Involve your client in the sourcing process.  If they are concerned about increased costs explain that healthy eating is a hot topic at the moment and their employees/customers will expect them to respond tothis.  Good food is a corporate benefit!

Accommodating smaller suppliers is possible

• Talk to your suppliers to overcome difficulties that may arise if you are a large caterer trying to work with small suppliers. 
• Make sure that the relevant internal structures are in place.
• If fragmented supply is a problem, encourage producers to form a co-operative that better meets your needs.
• Set up a customer group involving the catering team, suppliers and your clients so that expectations are managed on both sides and problems can be easily resolved.

Promote the Britishness of your menu

• Communicate menus inadvance, for example on employee intranets.
• Run a competition orprize draw to highlight the new menu. 
• Display POS materialusing the British Food Fortnight logo or the Union Jack in restaurants.
• Ensure the whole catering team knows about the new products and suppliers and encourage them to communicate this to customers while serving food.
• Include a ‘Chef’s Special’ on the menu to give you flexibility in your ordering process.
• Use phrases such as‘seasonal veg’ on the menu that enable you to take a variety of stock from different suppliers.

More Hot Tips on www.britishfoodfortnight.co.uk

Examples of how chefs worked with schools during British Food Fortnight last year

[Photography available on request]

• Northamptonshire chef, Dean Hoddle, spent a day at Chiltern Primary School teaching children – including his own son – how to make fresh bread, vegetable soup and a caramelised apple and blackberry crumble… all with British ingredients donated by the Kettering-based Hudson Fruit Group. 
• Culinary master Martin Blunos, who has won two Michelin stars, joined Kean Maslen, chef lecturer at City of Bath College, to visit Ralph Allen School in Bath. The pair arrived armed with a lamb, which had been farmed locally, and showed Year 11 catering students, aged 15 and 16, how to recognise the different cuts of meat. 
• Celebrity chef JamesMartin helped pupils from Upperthong Junior and Infant School put the finishing touches to their culinary herb garden for British Food Fortnight.
• Young chefs from St Augustine’s Catholic High School in Hunt End took part in a Ready, Steady, Cook-style contest with chef Felice Tocchini.  In preparation for Felice’s challenge, students were given food in a goody bag prepared by William Haines, who runs a mixed vegetable farm in Chipping Campden. The young chefs then had to prepare two dishes using the ingredients in just one hour. 
• Ye Olde Plough House pub in Bulphan, near Thurrock, welcomed children from Bulphan Primary Schooland Hutton All Saints School in Brentwood for the third year running.  The children picked fruit from the restaurant’s grounds and made their own crumbles and chutneys.
• Denis Mwakulua, London Chef of the Year 2007, gave a cooking demonstration to a class of 9-10 year olds at Laycock school in Islington. 
• Luca Nervi, from the Craft Guild of Chefs, went into Sandy Lane Primary School in Priestwood and worked with children aged four to 11.  He introduced them to a number of different dishes, all using British ingredients. The chef said: “British Food Fortnight is an excellent opportunity for us to visit schools and make children aware of where food comes from and teach them about new ingredients.  The children always respond with enthusiasm and excitement, they enjoy playing with food and tasting something different.”
• The Mare and Foal Pub in Yeoford near Crediton invited primary school pupils for a cooking lesson in their kitchens.  The children designed their own two-course menu, which they prepared and served to their teachers and classmates at the pub. 
• James Marron, chef at Durham’s Marriott Country Hotel, set up his stove in the hall at St Joseph’s RC Primary School in Gilesgate.  He prepared , ginger and carrot soup, an apple and blackberry crumble and crudités to demonstrate the range of vegetables to the children.
• Youngsters at Arley House School, in East Leake, rolled up their sleeves when ARAMARK chef Steve Coupefrom Boots, was invited in to teach them how to cook.  The Year 6 pupils were set to work peeling potatoes, dicing carrots and shelling peas as part of the lesson on making atraditional lamb stew.