AwardedAwarded 6 March 2026

Fresh Fruit, Vegetables and Related Products

Education Authority · Education

In brief

Education Authority awarded food and drink work to Henderson Foodservice Ltd on 6 March 2026.

The notice gives a value of £16,800,000 excluding VAT.

The contract runs for 3 years, up to 6 years with extensions, starting 1 April 2026.

The buyer says it is suitable for small and medium-sized businesses.

Built from the notice's own fields. Always check the official notice before you bid.

What the notice says

Supply and delivery of Fresh Fruit, Vegetables and Related Products to school meals kitchens within Northern Ireland. Contract period : 01 April 2026 – 31 March 2029 with options to extend for any additional period(s) of up to and including 36 months. The estimated value is £16,800,000. This Contract is established by the Education Authority and is open to the EA, including NI educational bodies as follows, who at some point, during the life of the Contract may wish to utilise the agreement and should have access at any point, with the permission of EA. This Contract is not intended to replace any current agreements that participating or nonparticipating institutions may already have in…Read the full description
Supply and delivery of Fresh Fruit, Vegetables and Related Products to school meals kitchens within Northern Ireland. Contract period : 01 April 2026 – 31 March 2029 with options to extend for any additional period(s) of up to and including 36 months. The estimated value is £16,800,000. This Contract is established by the Education Authority and is open to the EA, including NI educational bodies as follows, who at some point, during the life of the Contract may wish to utilise the agreement and should have access at any point, with the permission of EA. This Contract is not intended to replace any current agreements that participating or nonparticipating institutions may already have in place. Department of Education - Schools Plus https://www.educationni.gov.uk/services/schoolsplus Primary and Post Primary schools under the control of the EA, Catholic Maintained Schools Independent Schools in NI, Irish Medium Schools in NI, both Controlled and Voluntary Grammar Schools, Nursery School for NI (both controlled, and Catholic Maintained), Schoolmeals kitchens on-site at all of these schools, and Controlled Youth Centres. Further Education Colleges in NI : https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/contacts/further educationfecolleges NICIE - https://nicie.org/ Grant Controlled Integrated Education Schools in NI Independent Schools in NI https://www.isc.co.uk/schools/northern-ireland/ EA Teachers' and Educational Centres Council for the Curriculum, Examination and Assessment NI (CCEA) Armagh Observatory and Planetarium Middletown Centre for Autism Controlled Schools Support Council (CSSC) Northern Ireland Council for Integrated Education (NICIE) Pre-Schools and Nurseries included within the EA Pre-School Education Programme (PSEP) N.B. Estimated values stated, both including and excluding VAT are the same as VAT is not applicable to the goods included under this procurement

Who won

WinnerValueDates
Henderson Foodservice Ltd
4 bids received
£16,800,000
Awarded 23 February 2026
1 April 2026 to 31 March 2029

Values as the award notice gives them, excluding VAT where stated.

Timeline

  1. Tender notice · UK4, notice 076165-2025
  2. Tender notice · UK4, notice 076894-2025
  3. Contract award notice · UK6, notice 016258-2026
  4. Contract details notice · UK7, notice 028707-2026

About the buyer

Education AuthorityLast 12 months

Procurements

119

Awards

53

Suppliers it has used most for food and drink

From notice 076165-2025 on Find a Tender, first published 21 November 2025, last updated 27 March 2026. We last checked for changes on 28 September 2026.