The new “Restopolis” purchasing policy for school canteens: a success story!

As a reminder: Last year, Restopolis, the structure responsible for school canteens, partially revised its purchasing policy. Much more emphasis is to be placed on purchasing organic and regional products. The project – called “supply4future (S4F)” – is currently being trialled at 13 schools. The aim is to expand the project based on the experience gained in the participating pilot schools.

The Mouvement Ecologique can claim that this new purchasing policy is largely due to its commitment over the years. The new tendering practice will give both organic and regional production a significant boost. A milestone towards a future-orientated agriculture, thanks to Restopolis and – in all modesty – not the least thanks to the Mouvement Ecologique.

How does the S4F strategy affect food purchasing?

Restopolis and Mouvement Ecologique held a meeting at the beginning of February to discuss their experiences over the past few months. This was preceded by an exchange between Mouvement Ecologique and interested farmers and other stakeholders.

The results of the pilot phase so far, which were presented by Restopolis, are remarkable:

– Increase in the proportion of regional organic food purchased from 21% to 34%: i.e. +13%;
– Increase in the overall proportion of organic food from 23% to 38%: i.e. +15%;
– Proportion of regional products: 76 % to 75 %: i.e. -1 %.

An extremely remarkable result over the first few months.

And it is clear: thanks to this Restopolis project, far more regional organic products are in demand than are grown: a farmer has new sales opportunities in this context for many foodstuffs that are in demand! A considerable plus for local agriculture! Every organic farmer in Luxembourg, whose prices are correct, has a sales guarantee for his goods! All in all, regional production has considerable new sales opportunities.

What improvements are needed?

Based on the discussions that the Mouvement Ecologique had in the run-up to the meeting, a number of opportunities for improving the pilot phase emerged. Some of these are listed here:

– A clear statement is essential: The project will be continued and expanded! Some farmers apparently fear that the project could be terminated after the pilot phase. As a result, individual farmers and vegetable growers were reluctant to provide products specifically for S4F. A clear announcement is therefore necessary so that farmers are aware of this: The fact that the project is called a “pilot phase” does not mean that it should be terminated if necessary. On the contrary: the pilot phase is there so that “teething troubles” can be discovered and rectified for further development. Those responsible at Restopolis are certain that the project will be expanded from September 2024. This will also be communicated more strongly. This will give farmers a certain degree of predictability and allow them to align their production accordingly.

– Increase the ability to plan production from a farmer’s perspective: Restopolis would like to give smaller regional and organic farmers in particular the opportunity to supply their food. However, the Restopolis tender for individual schools is often issued at very short notice, e.g. 5 days in advance for smaller quantities. This leads to farmers being uncertain: Is it worth me growing certain types of vegetables specifically for the project, for example? Do I know that there is an effective demand for them and to what extent? This situation can be counteracted by Restopolis being even more transparent than in the past about how many products of what type it consumes on average per month or week. Once this is known, production can be geared towards it.

– Make practical the detailed modalities: Furthermore, there are some “detailed provisions” that are problematic. For example, the fact that tenders are issued in small quantities and sometimes only 5 days before the required delivery. Such a short deadline poses a problem for small meat producers in particular. Meat must be hung for at least 10 days. Longer periods and somewhat larger quantities would be very helpful here.

– Give preference to local producers: Restopolis is also keen to offer smaller producers and SMEs in particular the opportunity to sell their goods to the canteens. However, the problem here is that these often have to be delivered to schools via distributors, as the producers themselves do not (yet) have distribution networks. It is envisaged that direct delivery from the producer to the canteen will be more strongly recognised in subsequent projects.

The discussion on these and other aspects took place in an extremely constructive atmosphere. Restopolis makes a significant contribution to the promotion of regional and organic production, which is recognised accordingly by the Mouvement Ecologique. The openness with which possible improvements could be discussed is also very positive. Those responsible are determined to tackle the “teething troubles” of the pilot phase and initiate solutions until the project is extended even further in September.

February 2024