Food & Beverage Procurement Manager
Dukefield Ltd · Over Hulton, Bolton
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.
School catering menus are built from what a desk like this one decides to buy, including, almost certainly, the meat, dairy and eggs served across however many schools this catering business supplies. Someone in this seat sets supplier requirements, negotiates contracts, and signs off tendering and supplier-selection decisions that determine whose standards actually make it onto a plate at scale, and whether plant-based options get real weight in the mix rather than being an afterthought on the menu. It's not framed here as a standards role, and the advert is silent on livestock welfare specifically, so you would be building that lever yourself rather than stepping into one already built. But institutional catering procurement is exactly the kind of unglamorous seat where someone who understands supplier negotiation and cares about a better food system can start shifting what a school kitchen serves to thousands of children, and it's a credible route toward more senior category or sourcing roles with explicit sustainability, welfare or protein-transition remits later.
Where this role can take you
What this job teaches you, and the jobs it can lead to.
What you'd build
- Food and beverage supplier negotiation
- Procurement compliance (New Procurement Act 2023)
- E-procurement systems experience
- Supplier performance management
- Public-sector/education catering procurement
Where it can lead
- Senior Procurement Manager
- Category Manager
- Head of Procurement
These roles typically hold wider authority over supplier standards and category buying criteria, including decisions on which meat, dairy and egg suppliers meet welfare and quality thresholds.
About the role
Dukefield Foodservice, part of the Dukefield Group, is a 27-year established provider of catering operations to schools. This permanent, on-site role (hybrid working also mentioned in the listing) is for a Food & Beverage Procurement Manager (also referred to in the advert as Purchasing Manager) to lead purchasing and procurement of food, beverages and related supplies across the organisation's educational catering and hospitality operations. Key responsibilities include leading F&B purchasing and procurement activity; sourcing quality products and services competitively; developing and maintaining supplier and internal stakeholder relationships; negotiating pricing, contracts, payment terms, rebates and delivery arrangements; monitoring market prices, trends, availability and supply chain risk; working closely with catering, F&B management, chefs, Finance and Operations teams; aligning purchasing with budgets, forecasts and menus; using e-procurement platforms; monitoring stock and purchasing patterns to reduce waste; maintaining purchasing records and supplier documentation; reviewing supplier performance against service, quality and delivery standards; supporting cost-control initiatives, tendering, quotation and supplier-selection processes; ensuring compliance with organisational policy and procurement legislation; sourcing in line with food safety, quality, sustainability and organisational standards; and working with suppliers on New Product Development (NPD). Essential/desirable requirements: proven experience in food & beverage purchasing, procurement or supply chain management, ideally in commercial, catering, education or similar; public sector or educational sector experience advantageous; CIPS qualification or relevant procurement qualification advantageous; understanding of e-procurement platforms and purchasing systems; understanding of procurement frameworks and framework agreements advantageous; strong commercial awareness of F&B costs, margins and value for money; excellent negotiation and supplier relationship-management skills; strong understanding of procurement processes, contract management and supplier performance; strong analytical and organisational skills; strong IT skills including spreadsheets and procurement systems; customer-focused approach; proactive, solutions-focused approach; commitment to quality, compliance, sustainability and continuous improvement; good working knowledge of the New Procurement Act 2023. The employer offers a competitive salary and benefits package, support for professional development and procurement qualifications, and describes the role as offering the opportunity to influence procurement, supplier performance and service delivery within an educational environment.
This is an extract. Read the full advert on the employer's site.
How to position yourself
The language that works with hiring managers for this kind of job.
Position your interest around cost control, supply-chain risk and compliance with the New Procurement Act 2023, the levers this employer clearly cares about, while quietly building fluency in sustainable and higher-welfare sourcing as a value-for-money and risk-mitigation argument rather than an ethical one. A CIPS qualification (explicitly named as advantageous here) is worth pursuing, alongside familiarity with public-sector procurement frameworks, which the advert flags as a plus.
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