New toolkit launched to help Welsh food growers access £85 million spent annually by Welsh public sector.
At present only 6% of fresh produce procured by the public sector is of Welsh origin, but legislation that came into force in February 2025 has the potential to enrich local communities in Wales through re-directing the £85 million currently spent by the Welsh public sector on food.
Development Trusts Association Wales (DTA Wales), along with partners Robert Owen Community Banking Foundation (ROCBF), Social Farms & Gardens (SF&G) and Lantra are proud to launch a toolkit and range of resources to support Welsh food growers to make the most of opportunities within public procurement to sell their produce into public sector supply chains.
The toolkit empowers small-scale fruit and vegetable growers — whether just starting out or already established — to tap into public sector supply chains. It provides a suite of practical resources to help them access opportunities to supply schools, hospitals, care homes, and other public catering facilities, where contracts have long been dominated by large corporate suppliers.
Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning, Rebecca Evans said:
“It is great to see successes like this from our Foundational Economy funded projects. This new Toolkit will be an invaluable resource for vegetable and fruit growers, helping them to enter public sector supply chains, and improve self-sufficiency and resilience so we are less reliant on imports. It will also help us on our journey to net zero by the creation of shorter supply chains.”
“I commend DTA Wales for their collaboration and innovation on this project.”
Dr Nicola Perkins, Head of Programmes at DTA Wales said:
“It’s brilliant that we can host this toolkit and suite of resources to help small-scale vegetable and fruit growers to navigate the world of procurement. We know they’re doing incredible work, and we want to see them supported by getting more local food into our public spaces.”
“We worked closely with the Welsh Veg into Schools project during development to ensure these tools were meaningful and tested. We’re happy to be able to do our bit to support that cohort of growers into new supply chains, and hope that many more growers can be supported in future by our resources”.
The creation of the toolkit, hosted on the DTA Wales website was funded by the Welsh Government Foundational Economy under the Backing Local Firms Fund. DTA Wales’s partners, SF&G, contributed their expertise to the planning and collaboration tools, and ROCBF produced a comprehensive set of resources designed to support growers in navigating the financial landscape of small-scale horticulture. From understanding funding options and managing cashflow to exploring creative workforce solutions and maximizing crop value, these resources provide practical advice tailored to the unique needs of small-scale horticultural businesses in Wales. The project also created a cross-compliance matrix in partnership with Lantra who run Farming Connect (Horticulture) to help growers navigate the different horticultural standards required of them to meet food safety and hygiene standards and legislation.
For more information visit the toolkit using the link below, or contact info@dtawales.org.uk.
