„Catering services in the Pļaviņu region gymnasium“  is the first example of a circular public procurement coming out of the Circular PP project. The organizer of procurement was city of Pļaviņas (Latvia). As well as price, the selection criteria of procurement referred to nutritional quality, compliance with a healthy diet, the number of certified products in menu (especially organic), environmentally friendly transportation (under 50 km), and participation in the “School Fruit” programme. As a result of this procurement, the pupils will receive proper meals consisting of, among other things, seasonal fruits and vegetables, and organic milk (at least 50%). The meals will be served without use of disposable plastic containers, and the services will be evaluated twice a year by the pupils. One of the important requirements referred to the waste management. In this procurement, the service provider was responsible for sorting the waste (biological, packaging, and other) according to the waste manager’s instructions. The provider also has to carry out an inventory of waste generated in the kitchen and catering every six months, analyze this, and agree an action plan for waste reduction with the contracting party. The customer also has the possibility to indicate the using of surplus food. Finally, the provider was required to inform the contracting authority about the most important actions for the prevention of food waste. The procurement has a series of requirements for quality assurance activities, including: attending meetings with parents and teachers and providing information, immediately eliminating deficiencies in case of complaints, and providing the list of the suppliers of certified products.

Photo: Katrina_S (on pixabay.com)