This year, nearly four million school lunches[1] will go eco-friendly as children across England tuck into sustainable fish – certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and provided by Brakes (figures based on total number of children receiving school meals and frequency of MSC certified fish dishes on the menus). The MSC’s schools project, Fish & Kids reaches its thousandth school this week and sails beyond to a total of 1,040 schools engaged in the project so far. Primary schools in Surrey, the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, Norfolk and Hertfordshire will be offered a selection of fish fingers, steamed fish fillets and fish pies – all meeting the MSC’s strict environmental criteria.
What the MSC says
Laura Stewart, Fish & Kids Project Manager for MSC says: “These first Local Authorities are blazing a trail with their school lunches and, by choosing the MSC eco-label, they are ensuring that there will be enough fish left for future generations of school children. Almost 250,000 children are involved in this initiative already, and the more schools that join in with Fish & Kids, the better it is for the health of our oceans.”
What Brakes says
Adam Swan Commercial Manager at Brakes says: “A single Local Authority can account for thousands of fish fingers or fish fillets. Over the course of this year, the schools involved in Fish & Kids will consume 3.5 million fish fingers – that’s before we even consider the other fish dishes which all together weigh more than a blue whale! It is vital that the fish we are feeding our children is caught sustainably. The kids involved will also be getting a responsible, environmental message as well as a healthy lunch.”
Suki Sharples, Head Teacher at Ben Jonson Primary School in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets says: "There has been a lot of talk recently about making school meals more healthy. With Fish & Kids, we're making sure that not only do our pupils get a healthy, balanced meal but also that we're making sure that there will be plenty of fish around for generations to come."
About Brakes
Brakes is the leading supplier to caterers in the UK and France, with a turnover in excess of £1.6billion. Its strong understanding of the needs of the catering industry, combined with innovation in both products and service, has seen Brakes develop into the leading foodservice solutions provider. Brakes is also a significant supplier to the foodservice marketplace in France.
About Fish & Kids
Fish & Kids and http://www.fishandkids.org/ are part-funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and Project AWARE Foundation (International), http://www.projectaware.org/
Further information
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