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The purpose of this paper is to increase understanding of end consumer’s value creation in the context of Finnish nature-based tourism from the viewpoint of the customer-dominant logic (CD logic) of service.

Existing research on the CD logic of service and value creation, consumer value and value creation as a hierarchical process is reviewed. The exploratory research design was applied. The data were constituted of 40 end consumers’ interviews. Based on the means-end chain model, a laddering interview was applied.

The findings indicated that end consumer’s value created in a nature-based tourism service included five final value categories. Those categories were related to emotions and feelings, enjoyment, fun and even lifetime memories. They indicated long-term characteristics of value, individually created value, collective experience and shared value.

The findings increased understanding of end consumer’s value creation as a process. The paper provided ideas for developing better nature-based tourism service offerings, value propositions and insights into end consumer’s value creation in terms of individual and shared value. The findings are valuable for nature-based tourism researchers and stakeholders.

New knowledge on end consumer’s value creation process was created by presenting the hierarchical value maps. The five final value categories indicated the value-in-use. The final value categories emphasised either individual or shared value, which included the end consumer’s life and previous experiences. The preliminary findings will help to develop hypotheses and research problems for future research.

The purpose of this paper is to present the sustainable value chain activities that have been implemented when providing sustainable food services and sustainable value. A municipal catering organisation in Finland is introduced as an example.

The theoretical framework comprises sustainability as a strategy and the value chain and its sustainability. Existing research on the sustainability of food services and sustainable value in the professional kitchens is described. The primary data were collected from the two representatives of the case organisation using a written questionnaire with open-ended questions. Furthermore, secondary data from the web pages of the case organisation were utilised. The sustainable actions were categorised using a pattern-matching logic.

The findings illustrate the implemented pragmatic sustainable actions in all primary and support activities, which are local, national and international. These actions were based on the owner municipality’s strategy of sustainable development. Economic, social and ecological sustainable values were achieved.

The case description may act as a reference model for a catering organisation when targeting sustainable food services and sustainable value. The case might also be utilised as a teaching case in hospitality management schools. The paper contributes to the pragmatic view of sustainability by describing the everyday working orientation of the case organisation.

The case provides practical information on how to achieve sustainable economic, social and ecological values in municipal food services.

The aim of the paper is to describe the output performance of a foodservice R&D project conducted with hospitality management students. A school meal project is illustrated as a case.

The theoretical basis refers to the discussions of R&D output performance. The output measures on three levels are illustrated.

The empirical findings indicated that the output performance was achieved on three levels. On the scientific level, seven scientific articles were published. On the project level, one project report and five articles in Finnish professional journals were published. Finally, five Bachelor's theses were successfully completed, all of which contributes to the level of learning and teaching. Moreover, further procedures involved designing a questionnaire for the project, and utilizing collected empirical quantitative data in learning and teaching.

The school meal project conducted with students offered various kinds of possibilities for learning, teaching, and publishing. The published scientific articles disseminated the empirical results to international foodservice and nutrition audience, and the project report served both the local foodservice experts as well as the project financiers.

The value of the results is that a multilevel output performance for all actors was achieved by conducting a school meal project in cooperation with the students, the teachers, and the financiers.

This paper aims to describe the transformation towards consuming local and organic food (LOF) in the catering of a rural town. Product development cooperation, procurement, consumption, and prices are illustrated. Achieved local, social and environmental benefits are depicted.

Theoretical framework includes the EU's strategy for corporate social responsibility concerning public procurement. Recent research on LOF and its procurement are summarized. The sources for empirical data included web pages depicting the case town and an interviewee, namely the food service manager.

The results indicated that in 2011 local food products amounted to 46 per cent, whereas organic food products accounted for 14 per cent of the food procurement in the case town school's catering. The percentage of local food products in the whole town's catering amounted to 13. Benefits for the local community included money supporting the local economy, which thus facilitated the producers developing their businesses. However, higher prices were paid. Social benefits entailed that LOF contains the least amount of additives possible and LOF also advocates local food culture. Environmental benefits included, e.g. the following aspects: protecting the natural environment; decreasing packaging and bio waste; and diminished consuming water and energy.

Increasing consumption of LOF required the following actions: integrating LOF into the town's strategy; allocating extra resources; training catering personnel; developing products with producers; and organising local procurement procedures.

The results offer ideas for small municipalities how to increase the consumption of LOF gradually, and thus achieve benefits for the local community. The results may interest also those selling-in to that market sector.

This paper seeks to construct and describe a nutritionally balanced school meal model for a comprehensive school. The aim of the model is to illustrate an holistic view to school meals based on the pupils' needs.

The paper introduces Maslow's hierarchy of needs and eight theoretical views to school meals. The empirical data were collected in 2007 from the pupils (168), their parents (82) and the school officials (42) of four comprehensive schools in Finland by using a structured questionnaire which included open questions. Consequently, a description of a nutritionally balanced school meal model for a comprehensive school was constructed.

A constructed model for serving school meals consists of the following views: pupil's needs; nutrition, food choice and waste views; well‐being and energy; education; social‐ecological environment and school meal environment, as well as maintaining good health and preventing health problems. The model is structured according to the theoretical views as well as suggestions from the pupils, parents, and experts. Also the subjects responsible for the activities are included.

The constructed nutritionally balanced school meal model can be utilized as a standard model when serving school meals in a comprehensive school.

The model may act as a reference model for the school catering organisations and the school officials when decisions related to school meals are made.

The purpose of this paper is to test nine hypotheses whether pupils follow a plate model when they choose their school meals at Finnish comprehensive schools.

The paper introduces nine theoretical cviews to school meals and a plate model. The empirical data were collected in 2007 from four comprehensive schools in Finland. The nine hypotheses utilizing data from 168 pupils’ self‐reported school meal choices are tested by using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient.

In total, six hypotheses are accepted and three are rejected. The findings indicate that the pupils partially follow the plate model when they choose their school meals.

This paper has the following implication. We have to further increase the pupils’ knowledge on school meals and its role to maintain good health and prevent health problems, as well as nutrition information related to food choices.

In the previous research school meals have been studied from multiple theoretical views. This paper suggests that a broader theoretical focus on the pupils will further increase understanding of their food choices.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs is little used in research when analysing pupils’ needs, wants, and motivations related to food. To fill that gap, the purpose of this paper is to introduce the pupils’ suggestions for developing school meals in Finland from the viewpoint of Maslow's hierarchy.

Previous research on Maslow's hierarchy of needs, as well as pupils’ needs for school meals are briefly illustrated. The empirical qualitative data are collected from four comprehensive schools by using a sentence completion method.

The findings introduce pupils’ suggestions for developing school meals from the viewpoint of a plate model and its items linked with Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Most of the suggestions are related to physiological needs; i.e. main course, salad, milk and bread. Also other needs, such as safety needs, social needs, esteem needs, and self‐actualization needs receive suggestions.

The practical implications are that the pupils have all the five levels of needs related to school meals which have to be taken into consideration when developing school meals within the curriculum.

The paper is useful for all those whose concern it is to develop school meals.

The purpose of this paper is to explore and describe the self‐reported diet behaviour of pupils in four Finnish schools.

Overall, eight theoretical views on school meals are briefly illustrated. Empirical data were collected in 2007 from four comprehensive schools, where the school kitchen types were either a preparing kitchen or a heating kitchen. A total of 168 6th‐9th graders returned the questionnaire. The data were analysed by using factor and cluster analyses, one‐way Anova and F‐tests.

A total of six factors illustrating the dimensions of self‐reported school meal diet behaviour were found. They were titled as “learning”, “energy”, “economy”, “health”, “opposition to school meals”, and finally “impact of social‐ecological environment”. Based on the factor scores, the following two clusters emerged: “Pupils having a positive attitude towards school meals and learning” and “Impressionable pupils having a negative attitude towards school meals”.

The findings indicate that information on healthy eating habits and nutritional information – including the plate model – should be targeted, both to the pupils and the parents. Also, the pupils' favourite dishes could be served more often.

The study provides up‐to‐date, cross‐sectional structure on self‐reported diet behaviour of pupils based on eight theoretical views. The paper is useful for those who are interested in and concerned with pupils' diet behaviour.

The purpose of this paper is to construct and describe a snack service model for a comprehensive school.

Empirical data were collected from the school officials and the pupils by using a focus group method in two comprehensive schools. Moreover, the food service managers of Espoo and Vantaa cities' catering services were theme interviewed. Consequently, a description of the snack service models was conducted and a snack service model for a comprehensive school was constructed.

A constructed model for serving snacks consists of eight elements: snack products; service process; customers; pricing; procurement of snacks; nutrition recommendations; in‐house control and interest groups.

The constructed snack service model can be utilized as a standard model when serving snacks in a comprehensive school.

The constructed model may act as a reference model for the school catering organisations and the school officials when decisions related to snacks serving are made.

The purpose of this paper is to describe self‐reported and estimated school meal consumption patterns of the pupils and introduces the pupils' and their parents' suggestions for developing the school meals in Finland with respect to the plate model.

“Food choice view” concerning school meals, previous studies on developing school meals, and the plate model are briefly illustrated. The empirical data were collected in 2007 from four comprehensive schools. A total of 168 6th‐9th graders and their 83 parents returned the questionnaires.

The findings indicate that the pupils do not eat all the items of the plate model. The pupils and their parents gave the following suggestions on how to develop free school meals: more favourite dishes; more alternatives from which to choose; salads to be served as components; wider selection of salads; chilled milk, lactose‐free and fat‐free milk served with soft white bread, brown bread as well as rolls; finally, serve different components such as cold cuts on the bread.

The practical implications are that the pupils' and the parents' desires and wishes could be consulted more often and the municipal budget should be taken into account.

The pupils' self‐reported school meal consumption patterns indicate that the intake of the items belonging to the plate model could be increased by serving the pupils' favourite dishes, which could be of great importance to those in charge of health education and school catering organisations.