On 21st October, Lancashire Manor Hotel hosted the Mellors Autumn Party, seeing more than 150 staff and guests come together for an evening of celebration. This yearly event is an evening of celebration and thanks to our brilliant Catering Managers. An opportunity to get together with old friends and new, and raise some money for our wonderful nominated charity – Zoe’s Place! Our always popular charity raffle raised a whopping £1,370, while guests staying at the hotel raised another £1,480 by generously donating their room deposits upon checkout. Also awarded during the evening were awards for Small Unit of the Year, Large Unit of the Year and the Special Recognition Award. Congratulations to… Vantage Trust St James Primary – Small Unit of the Year winner Arena Academy – Large Unit of the Year winner Paula Evans from Garrett Hall Primary – Special Recognition Award winner It is so easy, in these times of high absence levels in the catering industry, to stop investing in talented people. But not at Mellors. On 11th October, our team of excellent Mellors Food Development Buddies came together for their annual training day at Lancashire Manor Hotel. The day focussed on food preparation and gastronomic skills, alongside some other key aspects of running a successful school catering service. All with the aim of upskilling the Buddies so they can go out to Mellors units across the north of England and share their skills with others. The event was hosted by Mellors Head of Nutrition & Food Development, Danielle and her team of talented Chefs. The team included Development Chef, Stuart Dale who in September came away with top prize at the UK StrEATFood Awards in London! Thank you to the team members who helped the Food Development Buddies take a day away from their units to build on their skills. Sharing passion for food, the Mellors way. Thursday 22nd September saw Mellors Development Chef Stuart Dale travel to Islington Metalworks in London to take part in the always fiercely competitive StrEATfood Awards, organised by Contract Catering Magazine. This competition searches for the UK’s most creative street food chef from the contract catering world. The 16 finalists created 3 dishes in a live cook-off, to see who would be crowned the 2022 StrEATfood Chef of the year. After 50 nerve-wracking minutes of cooking, followed by painstaking deliberations from the judges, Stuart scooped the prize of Meat-Free Dish of the Year for his deliciously tasty arepas! Massive congratulations to Stuart for this amazing win! He kept cool and calm in the pressure of the kitchen, not easy when you have a room full of spectators, and created a beautiful and tasty, award-winning dish. Well done from everyone at Mellors. In July, some of our Operations team were presented with a TV prize by Anthony from Kerry Foods, in recognition of Mellors’ creative use and uptake of their plant-based products. Plant-based ingredients and recipes are an important part of the varied menu Mellors provide to our customers. Our Catering teams have access to a wide selection of innovative and tasty plant-based recipes, using our ‘Plant-Powered Kitchen’ recipe packs. A big thank you to Kerry Foods for this recognition. The TV prize will be part of the charity raffle at our October Management Party, in aid of our nominated charity, Zoe’s Place. At Mellors, we aim to limit the company’s impact on the environment in a number of different ways, from reducing single-use plastics at each of our sites and sourcing recycled and recyclable packaging for our delicious meals, to maintaining a company car usage that is as low as possible. Every 6 months we measure our mileage to ensure that we are not doing more than is necessary, to keep our carbon footprint to a minimum. We’re really happy to share that over the past 6 months (January – June 2022) we have averaged 11,409 miles per company car driver (just 0.3% higher than the previous 6 month period). Thank you to all of our company car drivers for their continued efforts to minimise our company’s carbon footprint and help Mellors to make of difference… keep it up! We’re absolutely delighted to announce that Mellors’ very own Tom Armstrong, Chef Manager at Shelley College in Huddersfield, has been crowned LACA School Chef of the Year 2022! After two extremely competitive days of cooking at the LACA Main Event in Birmingham, Tom beat his talented rivals to claim this prestigious award. First time finalist Tom served up a menu of Tandoori Quorn & Onion Bhaji, Indian Spiced Quorn Cottage Pie with Crushed Bombay Potatoes, Butter Sauce & Greens and for dessert, a Coconut Milk Panna Cotta with Mango Puree & Freeze Dried Raspberries. The judges were clearly impressed with Tom’s stunning dishes. Chair of Judges, Kate Snow said, “Tom is a very worthy winner. All of his dishes were fantastic.” This year’s LACA School Chef of the Year asked competitors to create their menus using at least one Quorn product in both the grab & go and main course dishes, one specified Bisto product and a 50% fruit-based dessert. Tom took this brief and ran with it, creating 3 delicious, dishes that not only looked and tasted fantastic but were also reflective of school food standards. After the competition, Tom said “I’ve met some amazing people who now feel like family. As a first-time finalist, I loved the welcoming feeling and I’m so excited for the next 12 months.” Tom, who has been supported throughout this competition by our Food Development team, specifically Development Chefs John Connolly and Nick Constantine, will now take part in a year of catering industry events, including a study tour to Germany courtesy of MKN. Well done Tom! You’re a thoroughly deserving winner. Everyone at Mellors is extremely proud of you. Read more about Tom’s win and the LACA School Chef of the Year competition here – Tom Armstrong claims LACA’s 2022 School Chef of the Year (SCOTY) title | LACA Hi, I’m Sarah – Graphic Designer for Mellors Catering Service. This June, we’re asking you to plunge in at the deep end and pledge your support for World Oceans Day on Wednesday 8th June. Our participating Secondary schools & B&I Units are making their own pledges to reduce their impact on the environment. With Special Menus running and information being shared on social media, it’s a great opportunity to get customers, clients and Mellors staff alike to think about their individual impact on their environment. My pledge For my Pledge Plunge, I’ve chosen to pick up more litter (even if it’s not mine!). It’s a great way to get out in the fresh air (especially on lunchtimes), and as we look to brighter skies (wishful thinking!) I hope to go on more walks to give my body and mind that vital refresh it needs to keep going for the rest of the working day. How does this help the ocean thought? Did you know? 80% of all ocean waste comes directly from land. Litter that is dropped is often blown or washed into our streams and rivers, which in turn run into our oceans. It’s a win win really – by picking up rubbish, I’ve been making my surround area look good in the short term and protecting our oceans in the long term. In fact, it’s so easy – why don’t you try it too? Here are a few simple steps you can take to start a Litter picking too! 1. Order some litter pickers. Litter pickers are widely available. Do check with your local council, as some provide pickers and bags Free of Charge (Local Authorities may vary). They also have some handy hints about how to pick your litter safely. 2. Have a plan of what you are picking Check what recycling facilities are available at your school/work/home. e.g. we have General waste, as well as the ability to recycle clean plastics, paper, cardboard and tin. If you can recycle more than one thing, it’s a good idea to take a few bags so you can separate the different rubbish you collect. For groups: If there are a few of you – allocate 1 person per material, e.g. Plastics, Paper, General waste. This means that it will be a lot easier to sort through your items once you have finished picking If it’s just you: Don’t worry – you can sort out your picked litter when you get back, and recycle what you can. 3. Get picking! Now it’s time to get out in the fresh air, get walking, and get picking. Always keep in mind yours and others’ safety, and never pick up something that doesn’t look safe. 4. Sort your Trash! If you can, sorting your items into separate material piles will help you see what needs recycling. Be careful when sorting to avoid dangerous items. Plastics – these can fill with rainwater, so make sure they are empty before recycling. Glass – be careful, and only collect whole items If you have special bags from your council, these may be General Waste only. Again, if you can, recycle materials into relevant bags before disposal – this helps stop unnecessary waste from going into the landfill! 5. Tell us how it went! Tell us how you did with your litter picking – why not send a picture to sarahp@mellors.co.uk (and let us know if you’re OK to be featured on our Social Media) Was it 1 bag, 2 bags, or maybe more?! We’d love to share how you did! Be a ledge, and pledge! So, are you ready to make your own pledge for World Oceans Day? Be a ledge, and pledge – Whether that’s to cut your single-use plastics, taste our plant-based items, or try your hand at litter-picking, the sky (or ocean) is the limit with what you can achieve. Put your best pledge forward, because participating Secondary entrants could can win a prize. www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/MellorsOceansPledge We’re extremely proud to announce that Tom Armstrong, Chef Manager at Shelley College in Huddersfield, is through to the LACA School Chef of the Year 2022 National Final! Tom battled it out against two other talented school chefs at the regional final at Barnsley College on Wednesday 18th May and was ultimately crowned the winner. Tom will now take part in the national final at the LACA Main event at the beginning of July. This year’s School Chef of the Year competition is sponsored by QuornTM and Bisto. To reflect this LACA have set entrants the challenge of using at least one QuornTM product in both the snack and the main course, one Bisto product and creating a 50% fruit-based dessert, whilst adhering to school food standards. Tom’s delicious menu is: Grab & Go snack – Tandoori Quorn and red onion bhaji with minted yoghurt and coriander oil. Main dish – Indian spiced cottage pie (using Quorn mince) topped with crushed Bombay potatoes, served with wilted greens and a butter sauce. Dessert – Coconut milk panna cotta served with textures of mango, coconut milk crème patisserie, finished with freeze-dried raspberries. Well done to Tom for his brilliant achievement at the regional final and good luck for the national final! You may recently have seen an increase in the number of plant-based products available during your weekly shopping, as well as when you’re eating out. This week is Public Sector Catering Plant-Based Week, so we thought we would shed some light on what the term plant-based means, why it’s becoming so popular and what we have been doing at Mellors to support our sites to offer more plant-based options. What is plant-based food? This term means that the food comes from plant sources such as vegetables, fruit, beans, seeds, nuts and grains as opposed to from animal sources like, seafood, eggs, dairy, honey and meat. If you choose to follow a diet solely made up of plant-based foods, you might class yourself as a vegan. Why has plant-based food become so popular? People choose a vegan diet for a variety of different reasons, including concerns about the environment, the treatment of animals, for health reasons or because of taste and social pressure. For the Planet – From farm to fork, the production of animal products is taxing on our planet – from the crops and water needed to feed the animals, to the space, packaging and transportation. Huge areas are needed to grow food for animal consumption, which leads to deforestation, habitat loss and species extinction. By changing the types of foods we eat and how often we eat them, it is possible to ease the pressures on the global food system. If everyone swapped one red meat meal to a plant-based meal once per week is the equivalent of taking 16 million cars of the road each year. For the Animals – A large proportion of people choosing to eat fewer animal products or remove them from their diets completely, do so to prevent cruelty to animals and to protect animals’ right to life. Choosing a plant-based meal means compassion and empathy are on your plate. For your Health – Plant-based food can be healthier than its meat and dairy counterparts. Why? When eating plant-based, you’ll tend to eat more good stuff like fruit and vegetables, foods with more fibre and less saturated fats. This can help contribute to a lower risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity and some cancers. Does dietary advice recommend following a plant-based diet? Dietary advice across the world recommends increasing the number of plant-based foods in our diets for a number of reasons. Here are just a couple: Research shows us that there is a strong correlation between high intakes of red and processed meat and increased risk of colorectal cancer. Therefore, switching from red meat and processed meat once or twice a week for plant-based options would be beneficial. Switching to more plant-based foods will likely increase your consumption of fruit & vegetables, wholegrains and pulses and therefore increase your fibre intake. Diets consisting of more plant-based foods like vegan and vegetarian are linked with reduced risk of heart disease, strokes and type 2 diabetes However, if you choose to eat only plant-based foods, it is important to plan and choose carefully as there is a risk of not getting enough of important vitamins and minerals like iron, zinc, vitamin B12 and calcium. These are all extremely important for healthy development, particularly in childhood and are most commonly found in foods that come from animals. Plant-based foods are generally naturally lower in saturated fat and salt, however, they can still be processed and cooked in unhealthy ways just like any other foods so read food labels and choose carefully. Plant-Powered Kitchen by Mellors At Mellors Catering Services we love to create innovative and healthy food that meets the needs and preferences of our customers. We have seen an increase in demand for plant-based foods across our business, so we have listened to customers’ views, done our research and created our Plant-Powered Kitchen range. Part of our role feeding students in education is to support and encourage our customers to develop healthy eating habits and educate them on what a healthy balanced diet is. As our customers are predominantly children at a time of their lives when they are growing and developing rapidly, we need to be sure they are getting the right balance of nutrients they need whilst at school. With this in mind, we are not advocating our units develop solely plant-based menus but incorporate more plant-based dishes across the menu. Although we already had a number of vegetarian dishes that were plant-based, we felt it was important to have a wider variety available. Our range includes recipes packs for Primary and Secondary schools full of innovative plant-based recipes suitable for vegans. This also includes a cold grab & go range for our Secondary and Business & Industry sites with supporting ingredient labels to supplement our Natasha’s Law range. To promote these dishes to our customers and educate them on the benefits of choosing more plant-based foods, we have developed a suite of marketing materials, including logos for menus, posters and leaflets packed full of educational information. For primary schools, we have developed fun plant-based characters and stickers to encourage pupils to try something. And last but not least…. Mellors Plant-Powered Pop-Up Our plant-powered pop-up is a great opportunity for customers to explore different plant-based food samples and is the perfect flavoursome package to bring your restaurant alive! Our pop up will be showcased in our restaurants at lunch time with a range of free food samples and resources. A great way to introduce our customers to our new range of dishes and discuss the many benefits to being plant powered at school. Mellors Senior and Support Staff have been busy out and about in lots of our units over the last couple of weeks for our ‘In at the Sharp End’ initiative! These days saw more than 20 staff who don’t normally work in a unit spend the day as a member of the team. As you can see from the photos, everyone had a great day, sending time with our brilliant catering teams, getting stuck in, learning new things and serving our lovely customers. These days really help the staff involved to get a better insight into the demands of a Mellors unit. We’ve got some great news! Mellors have won the Innovation Award at this year’s Contract Catering Awards. Some members of the Mellors team attended the awards ceremony, held at the Leonardo Royal Hotel at London Tower Bridge on 29th March, and were delighted to scoop this prestigious accolade! This is the second time in a row that Mellors have picked up the Innovation Award, having won it in 2019 for our amazing Big Red Bus. After a 2 year gap, the awards are back in 2022 and this time we collected the trophy for our new operations management app – Toast. This app contributes to creating smarter objectives and more efficient management within our Operations and Support teams, so we can concentrate on the good stuff, like serving delicious food. Congratulations to everyone involved in the development of Toast. Watch this space next year…can we make it 3 in a row? Sunday 6th March saw the much anticipated return of Mellors Mega Day and what a day it was! More than 110 of our amazing Catering Managers, Catering Assistants, Operations team and support office staff were in attendance at Lancashire Manor Hotel in Skelmersdale for an exciting day of training and idea sharing. The theme for the day was ‘Back to the Future’ and it started with a lovely meet and greet over a coffee and breakfast sandwich, followed by an introduction to what to expect from the day by our Managing Director Mark Timmerman and Chief Operating Officer Tony Trainor. The delegates then enjoyed a morning of interesting and inspirational training and development sessions from some of our support teams, including Health and Safety Manager Sally, HR Manager Jenna and our extremely talented chefs. Following an open question and answer session with a number of the Mellors team, we had the opportunity to thank a number of our suppliers, who were in attendance, for their hard work and support in what continue to be difficult circumstances. That really was a special moment! After a lunchtime break, which included delicious food and a supplier trade fair with 13 of our suppliers exhibiting, the afternoon saw more opportunity to learn in sessions run by our Heads of Food Development and Marketing. The day culminated with everyone back together again in the beautiful Great Hall, for reflections on the day and prizes! There were lots of chances to win prizes throughout the day. Below is Julie from Arundale Primary School, who was delighted with her prize from Coulton’s Bread. Did you miss out on this year’s Mega Day? CLICK HERE to watch our short video of the day! It was fantastic to have so many of our brilliant Mellors family together in one room, after so long! Roll on 2023… we’ll get planning so it’s better than ever!