Big Fresh Catering Company excels at national catering challenge
The Vale of Glamorgan Council’s Big Fresh Catering Company put in an impressive performance in the 2022 ‘Eat Them to Defeat Them’ catering challenge.
Tracey Smart, Kitchen Manager at Palmerston Primary School, recently took part in the challenge and reached the Hall of Fame.
Tracey was assisted by Shirley Curnick, Catering Assistant at the school, and together received a prize of £100 and a certificate to recognise their achievement.
The challenge saw school catering teams from across the country create a selection of dishes for each week of the competition, ensuring that
vegetables were the ‘hero’ of each one. 
Councillor Rhiannon Birch, Cabinet Member for Education, Arts and the Welsh Language (Labour Group) said: “It’s great to see members of the Big Fresh team receive external recognition for their skills and is yet another example of their successful track record.
"This really shows how staff go above and beyond to ensure that they are providing a fantastic service. Frontline catering staff in all schools throughout the Vale are critical in building Big Fresh Catering and making the venture a success.
“The benefits that schoolchildren receive from the project are immeasurable. Big Fresh works with schools throughout the Vale, not just on providing catering for our schoolchildren but also on projects such as outdoor dining areas, wellbeing initiatives, and new learning programmes in schools. As well as this the company sponsors local football teams, drama clubs and runs the Big Fresh Café at Penarth Pier Pavillion.”
The Big Fresh business model allows the company, which provides food for schools and events, to operate as a commercial entity, returning all profits to schools and the business itself.
In keeping with this not-for-profit ethos, none of the company directors are salaried and the Council, as the only shareholder, has not drawn any money from the company.
The company is working hard in partnership with the Council and its schools to prepare kitchens for the rollout of universal free school meals, with our youngest learners in primary education set to benefit from the first phase of the rollout in September.
Since its establishment, the Big Fresh Catering Company has created allergen-free menus, increased vegan and vegetarian options, with more meals made from scratch and all meeting Welsh Government nutritional standards.
For more information, head to the Big Fresh website, send an email or search The Big Fresh Catering Company on Facebook.