About CPI

Catering Price Index was established in 1990. We benchmark catering prices, helping businesses and organisations in the public and private sectors to ensure they never purchase catering supplies over the general market prices.

Our service provides an essential audit for regulated organisations to prove financial probity and responsible management of public funds. Our data is also used by the National Audit Office for white paper presentations to parliament.

Our data can be used in this way because it is impartial and reliable. We are the only truly independent catering price benchmarking company in the UK:

• we do not purchase catering products
• we do not supply catering products
• we do not partner with any catering supply company.

How Catering Price Index began

Catering Price Index was founded by Patrick Thomas.

Patrick worked as a senior catering executive for over 20 years for companies including British Aerospace, Pye of Cambridge and MG Rover. In this capacity he was responsible for purchasing catering contracts and supplies. He knew he was paying above market prices for his purchases, but he didn’t know by how much. So he established a network of independent buyers who all shared their prices with each other. Armed with the information about how much they were paying in relation to general market prices, each network member was able to negotiate better prices with their suppliers.