The landscape of school catering is changing. Increasing time pressures and pupil numbers mean it is more important than ever that students have quick and easy access to nutritious school food. In light of this, we’ve collaborated with Impact Food Group (IFG), the industry-leading school catering provider, to explore how caterers can fulfil the increasing demand for on-the-go school meals. With expert insights on catering provision and service delivery, we are proud to launch our complete guide for schools looking to offer a grab-and-go meal service.
Speed up service with grab-and-go school meals
Lunch breaks are shrinking; most secondary school lunchtimes are under 55 minutes, and a quarter are 35 minutes or less, according to UCL data. It is a race against the clock to serve hungry students in the limited time available, so we’ve produced this practical guide on how to deliver an efficient grab-and-go meal service to reduce wait times and improve students’ experience in your school.
Provide healthy fast-food alternatives
Offering ready-to-go meals helps school kitchens compete with the convenience and appeal of out-of-the-gate options such as fast food and corner shop snacks without sacrificing nutrition. Grab-and-go services encourage pupils to stay on-site and eat healthy meals that meet school food standards. In the guide, Impact Food Group shares some pupil-favourite, street food-style recipes with complete nutritional breakdowns to kick off your school’s journey and inspire your grab-and-go menu planning.
Offer a flexible food service for modern school life
School days are not as they used to be. Busy students must adjust their schedules around extracurricular activities, shortened lunchtimes, and additional studying requirements. The speed and portability of grab-and-go meals and snacks provide the flexibility pupils need. They can quickly access food when convenient, eat on the go, and still find time to socialise, study, and attend clubs.
“Every school wants something slightly different, and CRB Cunninghams has helped us develop a system that allows us to be flexible in operating and improving our relationships with each school.”
Bryan Lygate, Managing Director, Impact Food Group
Supercharge your grab-and-go service with meal pre-ordering technology
Meal pre-ordering amplifies the benefits of a grab-and-go service. In the guide, discover how students can order meals in advance from a mobile app, web browser, or kiosk, ready to collect at lunchtime. Pre-ordering technology helps to reduce food wastage by informing kitchens of demand and trends in advance. Plus, a complete solution, with dedicated collection stations, helps to minimise cafeteria queues and crowding. CRB Cunninghams’ grab-and-go recipe guide provides practical solutions to help your school deliver an end-to-end grab-and-go meal service.
