An interview with Catering Manager, Lee Corke

Can you tell us a little about your career at Clare and the changes you have seen over the years?

I joined Clare in 2011. During my time, I have helped to improve the standard of food delivered in all areas of the College. I was instrumental in training the kitchen and front of house teams to three consecutive Steward’s Cup wins at the Cambridge Colleges Culinary Competition; this helped showcase the standard of the College’s Catering. I have seen our conference business grow through the food offering that also brings in a lot of repeat business from Education First, Oxford Royale Academy and ARM. I have worked closely with the students over the years to ensure we meet their requirements in terms of changes in eating habits. I have seen a steady increase in students who opt for a vegan or vegetarian diet, which currently sits at 52% of all buttery meals against fish or meat options at 48%.

Congratulations on completing your Master’s degree recently. Can you tell us about the course?

London South Bank University delivered the course, funded by The University Caterers Organisation. It included Hospitality Leadership, Strategy and Visioning, Marketing and Merchandising, Product and Market Trends and Drivers, Comparative Study and Sustainable Design and Operations.

What was your dissertation about?

My dissertation focused on the implications of a change in eating habits towards supporting sustainability and upholding the traditions of a 700-year institution. The purpose of the dissertation was to look at vegan diets and the opinions of students within the College. It questioned their opinion on whether eating a diet other than a vegan one has effects towards the carbon footprint of food, and whether changes are more sustainable by suggesting and changing the eating habits of the College population, whilst respecting the historical dining traditions of the College. In addition to secondary research, the types of research carried out were both quantitative and qualitative, firstly through a survey of undergraduate students, secondly, a focus group with undergraduate and postgraduate students, staff and Fellows, and thirdly, interviews with an undergraduate student and Fellows.

What, in your opinion, was the most interesting outcome from your research? Did anything surprise you?

The dissertation determined that there should be more emphasis on other diets and not just a vegan diet. Sustainability and why the College should make changes to some of the traditions were interesting discussion points. Of significance was how all user groups engaged and listened to the ideas put forward during the focus group. The different opinions I gathered during my research helped change the direction of the dissertation to look at more of a ‘flexitarian’ approach to individual diets instead of focusing mainly on vegan diets.

Is there anything you are looking to implement at Clare following your findings?

Yes, I am looking to implement changes to menus (with the support of the different College stakeholders) that will help support sustainability going forward. These changes will not happen overnight as there would need to be plenty of consultation with all parties concerned. We should not follow one path and remove all items from menus that are considered to be unsustainable as we should respect individual eating habits, but work towards making small changes that will have a bigger impact long term.

What do you think the future of College catering will look like?

I do think it will change in the future, with more emphasis on sustainable sourcing of ingredients for long-term benefits; and students will continue to be the driving force for change.