Friday bites

A carefully curated newsletter containing the most important stories from the past week.

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  • Secondary schools fail to meet food standards

    Secondary schools fail to meet food standards

    It has long been suspected that the current School Food Standards (SFS) in England are not widely adhered to due to a lack of monitoring and enforcement. This week, campaign group Bite Back supplied further evidence to support the suspicion

  • Quorn turns to blended products to kickstart recovery

    Quorn turns to blended products to kickstart recovery

    Quorn posted some promising financial figures this week, with stronger retail sales and a rebuilding of gross margins helping to boost revenue. But the meat substitute supplier’s performance in foodservice has left investors frowning

  • Ministers meet to discuss extreme weather

    Ministers meet to discuss extreme weather

    Ministers from Defra and the Department for Health and Social Care along with officials from the Environment Agency joined Burnham to discuss the immediate threat from wildfires and pressure on water supplies

  • Farming enters ‘climate doop loop’

    Farming enters ‘climate doop loop’

    The brown fields and dry rivers have told their own story, but the data crunchers at the Met Office have now confirmed what we can see with our own eyes

  • Citizens demand food system change

    Citizens demand food system change

    As new Prime Minister Andy Burnham continues to set his agenda for government, public polling has shown overwhelming support to put a healthy, fair and more sustainable food system at the heart of his plans

  • Burnham sets out plan for government

    Burnham sets out plan for government

    Andy Burnham sets out plans for government, including business rates relief, food security, food policy and support for the hospitality sector

  • Courage in the face of obesity

    Courage in the face of obesity

    The UK Government must be “more courageous” in order to prevent obesity in future generations, said a group of MPs this week

  • Egg challenge not quite cracked

    Egg challenge not quite cracked

    UK food businesses continue to lead the way in sourcing cage-free eggs from laying hens, however reaching 100% compliance remains a step too far for many

  • Winds of change

    Winds of change

    For a festival that began life a decade ago effectively as a knowledge sharing hub for a small group of progressive farmers, Groundswell has evolved into something altogether more sweeping in scope and scale

  • Deforestation law finally lands

    Deforestation law finally lands

    As visitors to London Climate Action Week events struggle to keep cool amid record-breaking June temperatures, the UK Government has finally moved to tackle a key driver of global warming – deforestation