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Caterers

Eat Them to Defeat Them is back for an eighth blockbuster year with an exciting new feature called Veg Hunters featuring The Great Veg Vote.

Over the last seven years over 1.8m children in over 5,000 primary and special schools took part, with 89% of schools reporting that children ate more veg in schools thanks to all the support from school caterers. 

Look below for a full guide to the programme, details about our Veg Hunters theme for 2026. Find out about our new Eat Them to Defeat Them Schools’ Challenge kindly sponsored by Tilda which replaces Caterers Challenge. Head to our programme resources page for more resources for caterers including a digital flyer you can send to your teams.

RETURNS 2nd MARCH 2026

This has really engaged the children both here and at home. We have had fantastic feedback from parents saying their children are eating and asking for more veg. Parents are also eating more veg and staff as well!

Catering Manager, Birmingham

It has given the kitchen staff a chance to be creative, added some excitement to their daily routine. In particular to see the faces of the children light up with great passion when they see their work on display and look of delight at the displays made and most of all tried things they wouldn’t normally.

Cook in Charge, Shropshire

We did a huge display showing all the vegetables in a fun colourful way. It was awesome! We based our decorations using the advert for inspiration. We also did huge tasting tables each week.

Gemma, Catering Manager, County Durham

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