Vale of York MP Ann McIntosh recently made a special visit to North Yorkshire County Council's school meals service to see how it is leading the country in encouraging local suppliers and growers to provide fresh food to school kitchens.

The MP also helped to celebrate the success of a Scarborough-based company, Stuart Foods Ltd, in winning a contract for supplying many of the county's schools , elderly people's homes and outdoor education centres with fruit and vegetables.

Stuart's will now be responsible for supplying over 250 establishments with produce sourced from growers in the Yorkshire and Humberside area.

As part of its drive to ensure that food prepared in school kitchens across the county is both fresh and local in a bid to drive up quality and reduce food miles North Yorkshire County Caterers, the school meals service has been providing support and encouragement to local suppliers as part of the tendering process for contracts.

County Councillor Jim Clark, North Yorkshire's executive member for Schools said: "I am delighted to see a local business successfully tendering for council contracts and not only employing local people but also supplying healthy locally grown produce for use in school meals."

Words: Maria Bracken

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