Catering contract supports Fairtrade campus

13 February 2008

Specialist student caterer Scolarest has been awarded a new three-year contract, worth
£11.4m in total turnover, to provide catering services at Oxford Brookes University for 22,000 students and five campuses.

The new contract is for three years with the possibility of a two-year extension. The new contract award will allow Scolarest to continue to build on its strong working relationship with the university where it has been providing catering services for the last 15 years. The company was closely involved in the University’s successful bid to gain Fairtrade status, helping Oxford Brookes become the world’s first Fairtrade University in 2003. The Scolarest catering team continues to work with Oxford Brookes to promote Fairtrade products and raise awareness of fairly traded food and drink.

Under the new contract, Scolarest will be investing to introduce a range of sustainable initiatives including biodegradable packaging, increased recycling activities and a ‘Cup for Life’ scheme (where customers have a thermal-insulated mug which they can re-use rather than a throwaway cup). The company will also provide an outlet on campus where local food producers can sell their produce. In addition, Scolarest is giving a new look to some of its campus catering facilities, including introducing a new Costa coffee shop at the Wheatley campus.

“We have a highly successful partnership with Oxford Brookes and are delighted to be able to continue working with the university,” says Tony Byrne, business director for Education at Compass Group, Scolarest’s parent company. “Our focus has been on providing food and drink which is of a consistently high quality and to reflect the university’s commitment to Fairtrade by making a wide choice of great Fairtrade products available on campus.”