Lamb is removed from school dinners because it is ‘too expensive’ and caterers are forced to put greens in burgers and cut meat content from 80 to 50% amid rising food costs

Lamb is being removed from some school dinners because it is ‘too expensive’ and the meat content of burgers reduced from 80 per cent to 50 per cent as caterers try to cope with rising food costs.   

A survey by the Soil Association found 47 per cent of school meal providers are facing such severe price pressures that they fear not being able to meet legally mandated food requirements.

Ben Jonson primary school in Tower Hamlets – which cooks meals for around 600 children – has been sneaking greens into burgers so they use less meat and serving smaller portions. Lamb has come off the menu for cost reasons. 

‘Substitutions are happening all the time,’ kitchen manager Pauline Gati said.   

A survey by the Soil Association found 47 per cent of school meal providers are facing such severe price pressures that they fear not being able to meet legally mandated food requirements

About 13 per cent of caterers said they had already fallen short of the requirements, prompting health experts to warn of a threat to pupils’ wellbeing. 

‘Many children rely on their school meal as their only meal of the day,’ Zoe Griffiths, a nutritionist and founder of ZG Nutrition, told the Financial Times. 

‘Children living in food insecurity could show signs of malnutrition. They will also experience social stigma and it can impact on mental health . . . concentration and behaviour in school.’

Recent Retail Price Index figures for food bought by ordinary shoppers showed the average price of a roasting joint of beef had risen by 9.8 per cent to £11.34 over the year to April, while chicken had risen by 10.4 per cent to £3 a kilo.

But caterers are reporting even more dramatic rises of between 20 and 30 per cent for many products, with prices often changing by the week.

The cost of minced beef rose by 11 per cent overnight in recent weeks, according to Laca, the industry body for school caterers, while one firm saw the cost of 10kg of prepared potatoes increase from £10.46 to £15.50.

And things could get worse, with a survey of food buyers by Sodexo finding that over a third (35 per cent) say they will be forced to continue increasing their prices due to the difficulties in managing their supply chain 

Rising costs and difficulties sourcing certain ingredients have forced some schools to introduce substitutions. 

Ben Jonson primary school in Tower Hamlets – which cooks meals for around 600 children – has been sneaking greens into burgers so they use less meat and serving smaller portions. Lamb has come off the menu for cost reasons

A recent survey found beef is being replaced with gammon on school dinner menus as caterers opt for cheaper meats in response to rapidly rising prices.

Some caterers are also switching from British meat to produce from abroad, raising concerns that the quality of meals is under threat.

Laira Green Primary School in Plymouth had previously served local Cornish beef for its Thursday roast dinners, but has now switched to cheaper gammon instead.

It is also serving less chicken and replacing it with turkey.

The school is one of nearly 70 in the city served by the same catering company, which is adapting menus in response to price rises, the BBC reported.

Head teacher Bernadette Kennedy said she was pleased the school could still offer a ‘healthy roast meal’, but added: ‘Some children stopped having roast dinner, and when we asked them why, they said they really liked the roast beef and Yorkshire pudding.’

Laca, the school caterers’ association for England and Wales, says schools are at ‘breaking point’ amid a storm of price rises and supply chain issues.

The Soil Association survey asked food companies what steps they had taken in response to rising costs 

Out of 160 catering companies which responded to a survey it recently published, more than 60 said they had either already switched from British meat to cheaper foreign meat, or were planning to do so soon.

In April, the government increased the amount it pays schools to cover free school meals for infants by 7p per child per day to £2.41. 

The Soil Association called the increase ‘miserly’ after inflation hit a a 40-year high of 9.1 per cent in May. 

Head of food policy Rob Percival said: “School caterers have been warning of a growing crisis for years and now, predictably, it has come to a head.

‘The government’s commitment to an additional 7 pence per infant meal is welcome, but when caterers have faced years of underfunding on top of the current levels of inflation, this is wholly inadequate. 

‘The government needs to be more ambitious and undertake a comprehensive review of school food policy and funding, ensuring that caterers are supported to deliver fresh and sustainable meals, and that no child ever goes hungry while at school.”