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They cater for thousands of staff and students each day, serving everything from pies and pizzas to cappuccinos and croissants. Now the catering team at Swansea is being applauded for its “remarkable” achievements with a glowing feature in an industry magazine.
The team’s work is the main feature in the latest issue of TUCO (p26-29), the magazine for university caterers across the country.
Describing Swansea as the ”gorgeous Welsh seaside city”, it says: "As an institution, Swansea University has gone from strength to strength in recent years, and the catering team has kept pace with its improving fortunes." 
The catering team can serve up to 4000 meals a day, and has outlets across campus to suit different tastes.
These include The Venue, which offers a varied menu of meals and snacks; Blas, which serves modern and international foods; and Café Glas and Hoffi Coffi, which serve Starbucks and Costa coffees.
Picture: Students in Blas (Welsh for "flavour"), which serves everything from coffees to noodles
Head of Catering Les Carmichael described how his team have updated what they offer in line with changing tastes and expectations. One such change is the growing number of international students.
“Noodles – available in Blas - have been massively successful. But we’ve developed a broad international menu; we have a range of international bread, like focaccia, and a selection of cheeses, pasta and pizza.
We’ve had an Asian executive chef – we have Italian people on the team, Malaysian people, Spanish and Estonian – all of whom add to the authenticity of what we offer”
Another change is the need to make food available around the clock. Les explains:
"Four years ago the University had 6 vending machines – now it has 52. It delivers 24/7 service to our customers, offering everything from coffee to snacks and healthy options"
As well as a strong international flavour, the menu also has a clear local stamp, with a local sourcing policy which means that many of the products come from the surrounding area. Swansea was also the first Welsh University to be awarded Fair Trade status.
Picture: international foods, but with a strong local flavour - the team served up Welsh treats for St David's Day.
In the words of the article: “Catering will always be a work in progress, but Swansea’s achievements are nevertheless remarkable”.
Read the article (pp 26-29)
- Monday 23 June 2014 16.41 BST
- Monday 23 June 2014 16.35 BST
- Public Relations Office