Pelican Procurement Services has introduced a new feature within their award-winning Piranha menu management system. The new feature helps schools comply with the government’s *School Food Standards which became mandatory in January 2015.
Matt Ferris, Online Solutions Manager, Pelican, says “This new feature is a quick and easy way for school caterers to check whether their menus are compliant. We believe this to be an industry first!”
The School Food Standards (which form part of the School Food Plan) were introduced by the Department of Education and are now mandatory in all maintained schools, as well as new academies and free schools. The new standards are designed to make it easier for school caterers to devise imaginative, creative and nutritious meals. For example, the standards stipulate that at least three different fruit and vegetables are served each week.
Matt Ferris says “Clearly it is an arduous task for caterers to check whether their menus are complying with these standards – with the Piranha system, checking compliance is simple – it can be done effectively with just a few clicks.”
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Luis De Abreu, Head of Catering for Greenshaw Learning Trust, says “I find the Piranha menu system an easy to use tool. Once I create our menus I can immediately see if they are compliant with the School Food Standards. I can also view all the nutrition data and see what, if any, allergens are present in every dish we make. I can then either print hard copies of the menu or publish it to our website so that this useful information is shared with the school community.
I am also pleased to note that the system automatically calculates the cost per portion and keeps the prices up to date – helping me with my budgets. What’s more, if I need any support I simply contact the Piranha team – they are just a phone call away.”
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Matt explains, “After customers have created their menu cycle, the system automatically checks whether their menu is compliant with the School Food Standards. If it is compliant, a certificate can be printed, with the school’s logo, for display within the school’s dining area. If the menu cycle isn’t compliant, the system will highlight what changes need to be made.”
The new feature has been developed under the guidance of Pelican’s Dietitian, Anna-Maria Holt RD who has been helping and advising schools on the latest School Food Standards. Anna-Maria says “Customers using Piranha will benefit from this easy to use feature that makes meeting the standards simple.”
In May 2015, the Piranha system won the Catering in Scotland (CiS) Excellence Business Innovation Award, for it’s ability to help organisations comply with EU allergen legislation**, track nutritional information and control costs for each dish served.
For more information, visit www.pelicanpi.co.uk
Or, to arrange a demonstration contact us on 01252 705218
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*School Food Standards – as part of the School Food Plan, a new set of standards for all food served in schools was introduced by the Department of Education, More information http://www.schoolfoodplan.com/standards/
