Production, and supply of food, in Council catering establishments
Dear North Lanarkshire Council,
I am writing to make a formal request under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, for information held by your Council about the food production methods and catering procedures employed within the Council’s catering establishments.
For the purposes of clarity, I am referring, primarily, to food supplied in schools; but, where applicable, if the Council has other catering offerings (such as cafés in museums, meals-on-wheels provision for social care, or staff restaurants), I would be pleased if you would include them.
## Food Production Methods:
RFI 1: Does the Council produce food for its catering outlets in-house? If so, please clarify whether this is carried out on a central site (e.g., central production unit), or within each individual site. If there is a mixture of both, please clarify, where possible [1].
RFI 2: If food is not produced in-house, please provide details on whether it is produced by a third-party facilities contractor (e.g., under a PFI agreement), or purchased from external sources, in frozen (or chilled) format.
## Recipe and Cooking Method Information:
RFI 3: In the event that the Council produces food in-house, please supply a copy of the recipes, and cooking / preparation methods utilised by the catering department for standardised food items. I would imagine that this information would be readily available, owing to standardisation of menu items [2].
This would include information on ingredients, preparation steps, cooking temperatures, and any relevant nutritional considerations (e.g., it might be noted on menus that certain items are suitable for those on restricted diets, or that some menu items have specific allergens).
RFI 4: If you do not produce food in-house, please confirm whether you hold standardised information as to what items are available (e.g., menus, and nutritional / allergen information), and supply a copy, where possible.
My preference would be to receive any correspondence electronically (as afforded under §11(2)(a) of FoISA), ideally in a format that allows for contents to be interpreted using screen reading software.
If the Council intends to supply redacted correspondence, I should be grateful if it would ensure that the text itself is "readable", e.g., by ensuring that content is not supplied merely in image format. Similarly, if there is data held in a spreadsheet format, please supply Excel or CSV files - a PDF may, for example, not allow for easy interpretation of the data.
I would hope that the bulk of this information is readily available, given the standardised nature of many catering services (particularly in schools, and social care); however, if it is likely that a "costs" issue will come into play, I would be happy, in the first instance, to limit my request solely to your school catering establishments.
I look forward to hearing from you within the statutory timescale, however, should you require any clarity, please do not hesitate in contacting me.
Yours faithfully,
Martyn Dewar
[1] for example, schools may well use a "hub-and-spoke" model, where a kitchen in a larger school supplies food, either in hot, or chilled form, for schools in its area. Alternatively, a cook freeze supply-and-reheat operation might be in place.
[2] e.g., to comply with the Food and Drink in Schools (Scotland) Regulations 2020: https://www.gov.scot/publications/health...
Dear Sir/madam
I acknowledge receipt of your request which is receiving attention.
I shall contact you again when I am in a position to respond more fully to your request.
Yours sincerely
Angelene Kirkpatrick
For Freedom of Information Co-ordinator
North Lanarkshire Council
Civic Centre
Windmillhill Street
Motherwell
ML1 1AB
Working from home
Please contact via email
Dear Mr. Dewar
Request for Information
I refer again to your e-mail of 21 August 2023 seeking information in
relation to production and supply of food in Council's catering
establishments.
Having investigated, my response to your four enquiries is as follows:-
(1) All of our food production is provided in‑house. We have a
mix of hub and spoke operations, cook freeze but predominantly site specific
production.
(2) Not applicable.
(3) Please find the attached information that has been identified
relative to your enquiry. The records have been adjusted to exclude anything
which constitutes personal data in respect of which disclosure would contravene
the data protection principles and this constitutes a ground of absolute
exemption in terms of Section 38(1)(b) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland)
Act 2002. The details edited from the documents which are effectively being
released into the public domain for all to access are initials of individuals.
(4) Not applicable.
I can advise that North Lanarkshire Council, having regard to the
provisions of Section 21 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act
2002, has established a procedure whereby any person who has requested
information and is in any way dissatisfied with the decision on that
request, can within forty working days require a review of that decision
by writing to the Chief Officer (Legal and Democratic), Civic Centre,
Windmillhill Street, Motherwell ML1 1AB. Accordingly, if you are
dissatisfied with this decision and seek such review please write to the
Chief Officer (Legal and Democratic).
I would advise, also, that in terms of Section 47 of the Act a person who
is dissatisfied with a notice given by the local authority under Section
21 of the Act - ie. a notice following a review of a decision by a local
authority, or by the failure of a local authority to give such a notice -
may make application to the Scottish Information Commissioner for a
decision as to whether, in any respect specified in that application, the
request for information to which the requirement relates has been dealt
with in accordance with the Act. Such an application must be made within
six months of the review decision and be in writing or in another form
which, by reason of it having some permanency is capable of being used for
subsequent reference. The application must state the name of the
applicant, and provide an address for correspondence. The application must
also specify the request for information to which the requirement for
review relates, the matter which gave rise to the applicant’s
dissatisfaction with the original decision of the local authority and the
matter which gives rise to the applicant’s dissatisfaction with the
decision on review by the local authority or the failure of the local
authority to issue such a decision. The Scottish Information Commissioner
can be contacted as follows:-
Scottish Information Commissioner
Kinburn Castle
Doubledykes Road
St. Andrews
KY16 9DS
email: [1][email address]
Appeals to the Scottish Information Commissioner can also be made online
via the following link: -
[2]www.itspublicknowledge.info/Appeal
I hope this information is sufficient for your purpose. If, however, you
require further information – or I can assist in any other way – please
let me know.
Yours sincerely
Angelene Kirkpatrick
For Freedom of Information Co-ordinator
North Lanarkshire Council
Civic Centre
Windmillhill Street
Motherwell
ML1 1AB
Working from home
Please contact via email
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