Bidfood
Bidfood is one of the UK’s leading foodservices providers, supplying schools and colleges in the UK. We are passionate about food and are proud to offer our customers a choice of over 13,000 Own Brand and branded lines from essential ingredients to ready-to-finish products; catering supplies; tableware and cleaning products. We can offer schools support with compliant menu cycles, product ranges to meet school food standards and products to help schools attain ‘Food for Life’ status.
Case study: A Decade of Trust and Quality
Our commitment to providing delicious, nutritious meals to schools is made possible through strong partnerships with trusted suppliers.
We have worked with Bidfood for over 10 years and as one of our primary food suppliers, Bidfood ensures the robustness of our supply chain while maintaining competitive costs. We have a long-standing relationship with Bidfood, a key supplier that plays an essential role in ensuring high-quality ingredients reach our school kitchens.
With an extensive range of suppliers and food categories, Bidfood enables us to offer diverse and high-quality menu choices using fresh and sustainable ingredients that meet the expectations of schools, parents and children.
The Value of Bidfood’s Support
Bidfood is more than just a supplier; they are a true partner in our mission to deliver quality meals. Their support extends beyond logistics and pricing—they contribute significantly to our operations by:
· Providing seamless account management to maintain efficiency.
· Hosting expos and supplier demonstrations that inspire culinary innovation.
· Facilitating food development days with expert-led insights.
· Championing sustainability initiatives aligned with our values.
· Added value to support our teams with industry challenges, sector topics, inspiration, innovation and more.
Bidfood also support us with keeping up to date on the latest products and innovation in the market. We attended Taste of Bidfood at the back end of last year to see new product development, B Corp suppliers, and gained valuable inspiration to implement onto our own menus.
Additionally, Vicki Hislop, National Account Manager at Bidfood, visited Belmont School in Harrow with me during NSMW and supported HCL to promote awareness and the importance of eating superhero vegetables to children. Bidfood share our mission to make nutritious school meals something kids look forward to everyday.
Andrew Sugden, Head of Food, Procurement & IT at HCL
LACA Partner Q&A with Gavin Squires, Business Development Controller - Education - Bidfood
Summarise your school food sector product and service range
Bidfood supports the school food sector with a comprehensive range of fresh, frozen, and ambient food products, alongside essential non-food items. Our offer includes school compliant products, allergen-aware options, plant-based choices, and culturally diverse foods. Beyond products, we provide menu planning support, nutritional guidance, cost-management tools, and digital ordering solutions, helping school caterers deliver safe, balanced, and appealing meals efficiently.
Why is the school food sector so important to your business?
The school food sector is vital to Bidfood as it enables us to play a meaningful role in supporting children’s health, wellbeing, and food education. Working with schools closely aligns with our values around responsible sourcing, nutrition, and community impact. It also allows us to build long-term partnerships with caterers, helping them meet evolving standards while delivering consistency, quality, and value in a challenging financial environment.
What do you do as a company to support the school food sector?
Bidfood supports the school food sector through a wide range of practical and strategic initiatives. These include free online training via Caterers Campus, chef development programmes, menu engineering support, and comprehensive allergen, food safety, and compliance guidance. We help school caterers manage budgets effectively, reduce waste, improve operational efficiency, and progress sustainability initiatives.
Bidfood’s approach to food safety and allergens includes collecting, verifying and regularly updating allergen data from suppliers, and making this information available through online tools that help caterers plan menus, analyse recipes, and produce compliant labels. We also provide expert advice and ongoing support on product safety and allergen management, share best practice for managing allergens in kitchens, and support allergy awareness in line with UK regulatory expectations. Beyond operational support, Bidfood actively engages with government on school food policy. We published The Future of the Provision of School Meals in State Schools in England, which calls for sustainable funding, expanded free school meal eligibility and improved access to nutritious food.
Bidfood is an active member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for School Food and continues to lobby government for increased funding for school meals.
What is your lasting memory of school food from when you were at school?
A lasting memory of school food is the comfort of a hearty lunchtime meal that brought everyone together. Lunchtime was a social moment - sharing food with friends and enjoying familiar dishes that felt reassuring and satisfying, often becoming the highlight of the school day.