1. To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it will work with Sodexo to improve the food for life catering mark in the garden level restaurant from bronze to silver. (S5O-00766)

I share Mr Ruskell’s ambition to gain silver status. The garden level restaurant was awarded the Soil Association’s food for life catering mark in May 2015, achieving the bronze level. As part of our reaccreditation in 2016, we began to investigate further the possibility of obtaining the silver level. The work is on-going and we are working closely with Sodexo.

We hold a number of other important accreditations, including under the healthy living award plus, the Marine Stewardship Council certification for sustainable food

, red tractor status, the British Lion quality mark for free-range eggs and the RSPCA freedom food scheme, and coffee is triple certified.

Today is international school meals day. Some 20 million food for life meals are served annually in Scotland, and many of those are served in our schools. One of the challenges in moving up through the food for life programme is the need to allocate enough budget for ingredients. Perhaps the corporate body and Sodexo would like to take some advice from our schools in Scotland, which are doing some excellent work. A number of schools have reached the gold standard and have high levels of ethically sourced ingredients and even organic ingredients in their school meal menus even though they work to tight budgets.

Mr Ruskell makes some excellent points about looking at best practice. I will ask officials to liaise closely with schools to look at the work that they have carried out. As members will be aware, to achieve the silver award, there is a requirement to include more organic produce. We are looking closely at that, but I will welcome any examples of best practice from any member.