Public procurement as a lever for organic and healthier meals

Public meal programmes play an important role in shaping diets, health outcomes and food systems. Through public procurement, public authorities can influence menus, standards and sourcing in public kitchens while supporting healthier meals – working within existing budgets and frameworks.

The UK has a long-established tradition for public and school meal schemes. Denmark, which entered organised public meals later after many years of packed lunches, has over the past 5–10 years worked deliberately with public procurement as a policy tool to support organic and healthier meals in public kitchens. This experience provides a basis for dialogue across different public meal systems.

On 12 March 2026, the Royal Danish Embassy in London, in collaboration with Food Nation, will host an event bringing together Danish and UK stakeholders to exchange perspectives on how public procurement can be used within existing public meal systems. The discussion will focus on practical experiences, enabling conditions and the role of operators and suppliers in making procurement work in practice.

You will meet, among others:

• Rasmus Prehn, CEO, Organic Denmark
• Bettina Bergmann Madsen, Head of Procurement, Municipality of Copenhagen
• Denis Verrier, Procurement Director, Foodbuy
• Anna Taylor, Executive Director, The Food Foundation

The programme will be updated continuously.

Interested in participating?
For more information, please contact:
Jan Bay-Smidt, Minister Counsellor
Royal Danish Embassy, London