In Rome’s school canteens: ‘fresh food and no more plastic’

Fairer, more sustainable and tastier. This is what school canteens in the capital are set to become, according to Rome City Council’s new school catering tender, presented today at the Campidoglio.

“The primary aim is to ensure a high standard of service and good food. And also to ensure that this service provides an opportunity to promote a healthy and mindful approach to food amongst our children,” explained the Mayor of Rome, Roberto Gualtieri, during his speech. Furthermore, according to the mayor, “the next step forward is the phasing out of processed food. Meals will all be served on non-plastic plates and cooked in the schools themselves. This, too, helps to improve quality. And there will be an incentive scheme for schools that reuse surplus food for social projects, thereby combating food waste.”

The call for tenders, divided into 15 lots – one per borough – has a budget of 766 million euros over four years. The call was published on 16 July and will close on 15 September. The service will cover Rome’s nurseries, transition classes, municipal and state nursery schools, primary schools, lower secondary schools, teaching staff and support staff for pupils with disabilities, providing nearly 23.6 million meals a year – around 150,000 meals a day.

The tender sets an average cost per meal of 6.53 euros, to be borne by the local council, which may not be subject to lower bids. Ultra-processed products are excluded, whilst organic, PDO, PGI and seasonal produce, as well as fresh fish, are favoured. More fruit and vegetables will be served, and the Minimum Environmental Criteria (CAM) will be applied extensively.