Category Buyer
Foodbuy · Chertsey
Our estimate of how close this job is to decisions about what protein a business sources, specifies, buys and serves. How we score
Why this role matters
How close this job is to real sourcing and menu decisions.
NHS food services feed patients, staff and visitors across the country every day, and category strategy is where the choice of what gets served is actually made: which suppliers win contracts, what specifications they must meet, and what gets prioritised in tenders. If this seat's categories include meat, dairy, eggs or seafood, the sourcing strategies and supplier requirements this buyer writes could shape the welfare standards and protein mix behind millions of NHS meals; the advert doesn't confirm which categories fall to this specific buyer, so treat this as a genuine possibility rather than a certainty. Even where the immediate remit turns out to be produce or dry goods, this role sits inside one of the country's largest public-sector food buying operations and builds the tendering, category-strategy and supplier-management experience that senior food procurement roles are built on. Someone playing the long game could use this seat to learn how public-sector food specifications actually get written, then move toward a category role with explicit protein or welfare scope, or one that touches sustainability and supply chain resilience more broadly.
Where this role can take you
What this job teaches you, and the jobs it can lead to.
What you'd build
- Public sector procurement compliance
- End-to-end tendering and category strategy
- Supplier relationship management at scale
- Spend and market data analysis
- Contract mobilisation experience
Where it can lead
- Senior Category Buyer
- Category Manager
- Procurement Manager
Senior category and procurement roles at this scale set the specifications and supplier requirements that determine whether higher-welfare or plant-based options are written into public-sector food contracts.
About the role
Foodbuy is recruiting a Category Buyer for its NHS Supply Chain: Food team, based hybrid from Chertsey, Wakefield or Daresbury (2 days per week in the office). Foodbuy, part of Compass Group UK & Ireland, manages over £2 billion of food procurement spend, and this team supports NHS organisations in delivering safe, sustainable and cost-effective food services to patients, staff and visitors. The postholder will manage procurement and category activities across a range of food categories, developing and implementing category strategies aligned to business and customer objectives, and leading end-to-end procurement and tendering activities from sourcing strategy through to contract award and implementation. They must ensure procurement activities comply with public sector procurement regulations and governance requirements, build and maintain strong supplier relationships to drive performance and innovation, and conduct market analysis to identify commercial opportunities and mitigate risks. The role also involves analysing spend, supplier and market data to support commercial decisions, delivering procurement projects against savings, growth and value targets, collaborating with NHS Trusts and internal stakeholders, and supporting framework launches, contract mobilisation and ongoing supplier management initiatives. Essential experience includes procurement, category management, supply chain or commercial roles; leading sourcing, tendering or supplier management activities; strong stakeholder engagement and relationship-building skills; analytical and commercial thinking; negotiation, influencing and communication skills; the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment; and experience using data and market insight for commercial decisions. Advantageous experience includes public sector procurement, knowledge of food procurement, foodservice or FMCG categories, experience with NHS organisations or procurement frameworks, and a CIPS qualification or progress towards one. The advert lists a competitive salary and benefits package, hybrid working, career development opportunities within Foodbuy and Compass Group UK & Ireland, exposure to large-scale procurement programmes and strategic category management, and the opportunity to contribute to improving food services across the NHS.
We added this one ourselves, from the employer's own advert.
How to position yourself
The language that works with hiring managers for this kind of job.
Frame your interest around delivering value, compliance and innovation in public-sector food procurement, the language this advert uses throughout. If you want to build toward animal-relevant categories, mention interest in sustainable and higher-welfare sourcing as a way of managing supply risk and meeting NHS sustainability commitments, and consider working toward a CIPS qualification, which the advert lists as advantageous.
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