Document shows ‘promises were not kept’ by catering firm

BANNED Thai chicken was found in a rodent-infested Camden school kitchen eight months after catering bosses promised it would never happen again, documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act reveal this week.
And Parliament Hill School has become the third school in the borough to pull out of the council’s contract with under-fire catering giants Scolarest.
The school, in Highgate Road, Parliament Hill, followed South Camden Community School in Somers Town and Brookfield Primary School in Highgate when it took control of its own kitchens at the beginning of the month after a string of complaints about the poor quality of food.
The dossier shows that Town Hall officials believe headteacher Christine Peters opted out because “promises were not kept by Scolarest”.
They found a bag of Thai chicken in November – months after Scolarest had insisted it did not use meat from outside the European Union. Mice were also spotted in the food preparation area and the school had “an active rodent problem”, emails between the Town Hall and Scolarest show.
Imports of Thai chicken were banned by the EU in January last year following an outbreak of deadly Asian bird flu and the council told Scolarest to stop serving remaining stocks of Thai chicken products in February.
But parents at St Paul’s Primary School in Primrose Hill raided the school kitchens a month later and found Thai chicken. Scolarest insisted the banned meat was “in storage” and would not have been served to pupils.
Natasha Seery, one of the mothers who found the Thai meat at St Paul’s, said: “I don’t know how anyone can take what Scolarest says seriously or why Camden won’t end their contract now.
“They said there wasn’t any Thai meat there and then we found it, then they said they wouldn’t have any more of it and it shows up again, nearly a year later.”
The dossier also shows Town Hall contract manager Ian Patterson planned to serve Thai chicken again last May when the New Journal revealed its discovery at St Paul’s.
A Town Hall press official said: “School meals have improved considerably since last year, when most of the correspondence dates from, and Camden continues to work hard to make further improvements.
“Camden Council is reviewing school meals and, on May 25, we will come forward with a long-term plan to deliver the high quality and nutritious meals we are committed to providing.”
A Scolarest Spokesman said: “The chicken found at Parliament Hill School was cooked chicken strips, primarily used in secondary school menus only. Following a minor change in the product specification, the origin of the revised product was not confirmed until orders were received.
“Scolarest maintains its commitment to not serving any chicken products from Thailand.”