The Source

A higher demand in patient salad requests, vegetables harvested from the hospital’s own growing patch and a responsive relationship with local suppliers have helped Milton Keynes University Hospital (MKUH) make the most of British produce this summer.

Love British Food caught up with catering manager Frank Fiore to find out how MKUH’s seasonal sourcing story has developed through the hottest summer on record – and during a major redevelopment of its kitchen and restaurant facilities.

Despite the exceptionally dry weather experienced by British growers, Frank says MKUH has not faced significant problems sourcing fresh produce.

Close communication with suppliers has allowed his team to respond quickly to what is available, bringing seasonal ingredients into the staff restaurant and, wherever possible, onto patient plates.

“We’re pretty flexible in the staff restaurant and can change what’s on offer pretty much straight away,” says Frank.

“For patients, we can adapt our fresh soup offering based on what's delivered.”

A summer of lighter eating

The hot weather has inevitably influenced what people want to eat.

When Love British Food spoke to Frank in spring, he was preparing to introduce a salad of the week as part of MKUH’s warmer-weather offer.

That idea has now become a reality, with with a mozzarella and tomatoes salad, and a vegan Greek feta and watermelon salad among the dishes served.

Patient salad requests have increased significantly, while sandwiches and other cold choices have also proved popular.

“The hot weather this year has made me think a lot about how people eat,” he says.

“Food needs to be quicker, lighter and more refreshing, and we need to think about different needs – can someone eat it on the go or outside?

“For patients, does it always have to be a hot meal? If not, what else can we add to the menu that is still nourishing and filling, but can be eaten cold?”

One surprising constant has been MKUH’s homemade soup.

“Despite the heat, our soup has continued to be really popular,” adds Frank.

“We knew making it ourselves was the right thing to do and its continued popularity has really reinforced that.”

Harvesting from the hospital grounds

Some of the shortest supply chains this summer have been found within the hospital grounds.

MKUH’s growing patch has produced an abundance of courgettes, including some that became impressively sized marrows.

Beetroot, tomatoes and spring onions have also made their way into the kitchen.

The team has supplemented these home-grown ingredients with seasonal British produce sourced through its suppliers, including purple sprouting broccoli and Romanesco broccoli.

Purple sprouting broccoli was used in a pasta dish, while Romanesco featured in a broccoli and Stilton quiche.

For Frank, ingredients like these offers something beyond seasonality.

They can start conversations about where food comes from and introduce diners to produce they may not previously have encountered.

“Our farm-to-table approach has ignited discussions around food items some people have never seen, let alone tasted,” he says.

“We want to expand on that even more when our new kitchen facilities are in operation.”

Knowing what is coming out of the ground

Central to that flexibility is MKUH’s relationship with fresh produce supplier AB Fruits and its network of local growers.

Regular crop information gives Frank advance knowledge of what is performing well and what is coming into availability.

This summer, the team received alerts including an update highlighting how Savoy cabbages had responded well after rain.

“AB Fruits is great at letting us know what has come from their local farmers and we’re quick to jump on and order what we can,” says Frank.

“It gives me confidence in the reliability of locally sourced food because it hasn’t got far to come to get to us – it’s so close that, if it couldn’t come to me, I could almost go and get it myself.”

That communication also gives the kitchen greater freedom to respond to the British growing season rather than relying solely on a fixed menu.

While the difficult summer has affected growers around the country, Frank says MKUH has so far experienced no significant availability or quality issues with fruit and vegetables.

Local sourcing moves into meat

Progress is also being made beyond fresh produce.

MKUH’s previous local meat supplier ceased trading, with a new local butcher brought on board, which Frank says is working well.

That development is particularly important because sourcing local meat has historically proven more difficult than sourcing local fruit and vegetables.

The new relationship is already opening up opportunities for British Food Fortnight, including plans to use locally sourced sausage meat in homemade Scotch eggs.

Frank says diners are increasingly interested in provenance, particularly when it comes to meat.

“Some of our customers ask where our ingredients come from, especially the meat,” he says.

“It’s something we want to educate people more about when we move into the new restaurant.”

Keeping patients hydrated

Food has been only part of the catering team’s response to the hot summer.

Following plans outlined in the spring edition, cold flavoured drinks have now been introduced alongside hot drinks for patients.

Frank says the change has resulted in greater uptake and has also helped the team serve drinks more efficiently.

On particularly hot days, the catering team went a step further, providing ice lollies to patients and staff.

The response reinforced the value of adapting the catering offer to conditions across the hospital, rather than treating menus and refreshments as static.

British favourites return for the Fortnight

As summer moves into autumn, Frank is now looking ahead to British Food Fortnight and the opportunity to showcase another side of British food.

After a summer characterised by salads and lighter dishes, the menu will move towards familiar comfort food, including gammon, roast dinners, bangers and mash, homemade pies and traditional fish and chips.

“There’s something about those traditional dishes that people really connect with,” says Frank.

“When it’s raining outside, you want a nice cottage pie with a bit of gravy.”

To mark the 25th anniversary of British Food Fortnight, Frank is also planning a friendly competition with his chefs to see whose British home-comfort dish proves most popular at the counter.

For Frank, the appeal of the Fortnight lies partly in the familiarity of the food.

“There’s usually at least one dish that strikes a nostalgic note with someone and brings them back to home,” he says.

Building for the next stage

All of this is being delivered while MKUH undergoes a major kitchen and restaurant redevelopment.

Frank and his team are now working from a smaller temporary facility, but have maintained hot meals and snacks for staff and visitors alongside their wider catering responsibilities.

The first phase of the new kitchen is expected to be completed by the end of January, with the wider restaurant redevelopment scheduled to follow.

Frank believes the new facilities will provide an opportunity to build on the progress made over the past year.

Ultimately, the ambition is to bring more of the thinking already evident in the staff restaurant – freshly prepared food, responsiveness to the seasons and greater use of local ingredients – into patient catering wherever practical.

“When we get our kitchen back, I want to look at what else we can put on the patient’s plate that we make in-house, potentially using local ingredients too,” he says.

“We want to keep expanding that farm-to-table story.”

Why not read the other blogs in our Inside Britain’s Sourcing Story series?



MKUH Spring edition

Local Food Links Spring edition

Meallmore Care Homes Spring edition