Glasgow 2014 launched a deeply impressive food charter last year that all appointed caterers to the Commonwealth Games were required to sign up to.

Central to it is showcasing Scotland's larder and the ethical, safety, sustainability and health credentials of all food served across the Games, including traceability and how it has been produced. A range of stakeholders was involved in putting the charter together, including government agencies, Scottish Enterprise, the Food Standards Agency, the British Hospitality Association, Glasgow City Council and the Glasgow Restaurant Association.

The intention is that all Games venues, including the athletes' village, will benefit from this written commitment. It's anticipated that more than two million meals will be served during the Games, so it's good to know athletes and spectators will sample traceable, sustainable and healthy homegrown produce.

Catering tenders have been applied for and we wait to hear who has been awarded them, and which suppliers they will engage to fulfil this innovative remit (though whether they're allowed to publicise their involvement is doubtful). As far as I can tell, the food charter is unique, and sets the Games apart from anything aspired to at the London Olympics.

What might be happening elsewhere in the city, outwith the Games venues, remains a secret, however. I hear things are going on behind the scenes, but it would be good for the rest of us to learn if we can expect the kind of pop-up and street food events that should be de rigueur for a city as edgy as Glasgow, a world leader in contemporary art, fashion and design which harbours a deliciously subversive foodie scene. One hears whispers, of course. There's to be an independent producers' market on Glasgow Green and a Glasgow Street Food festival in the Merchant City to allow non-ticket holders to graze while watching the action on giant screens (though it's unclear if vendors at these events will also be subject to the food charter). Restaurants are being given an hour's extension on their alcohol licences. Applications for pavement licences are to be lodged now. And so on.

So it comes as both a delight and a disappointment to see that Edinburgh appears to have stolen Glasgow's thunder. The capital is to host a series of interesting foodie events under the banner of GastroFest during the international science festival in April. It sounds like something Copenhagen would dream up for its annual MAD symposiums, whose stated desire is to build a community of cooks, purveyors and thinkers with an appetite for knowledge and a desire to improve the restaurant trade.

GastroFest will have a scientific farmers' market with separate zones for cheese, meat, fish, dessert, so producers can explain the molecular/gastronomic process behind their product. There's also to be a bespoke sensory dining experience, complete with gastronomic installation, by the groundbreaking duo Jelly and Gin, who excel in challenging perceptions.

But what hits home hardest is Feast of the Commonwealth, a dinner to mark 100 days to the Games. I'm told the evening will encompass sustainability and foods with natural additional health benefits such as probiotics and cholesterol-reducing stenols, with a focus on local and grassroots produce and movements within Scotland and abroad. Diners will learn how plants and produce which are indigenous to Scotland - and Commonwealth nations - can be cultivated not only for their flavour, but for their nutritional properties and contribution to our health and general wellbeing. The festival is working with Queen Margaret University, in particular with their dietetics, nutrition and biological sciences research centre, which has been active in the field for many years. Between courses Dr Jane McKenzie, academic lead for Food & Drink Knowledge Exchange, will be leading break-out sessions. Plants and produce they have conducted extensive research on (seabuckthorn and timothy grass, for example) will be used within the specially created menu.

Issues of food security and production will also be discussed, in particular by guest speaker Prof Mary Abukutsa-Onyango, the recipient of the Science Festival Edinburgh Medal 2014, who will give an address discussing the health benefits and economic opportunities provided by farming indigenous crops with traditional methods.

The whole thing is being heralded as a showcase for Scottish produce that will reveal a compelling scientific dimension to our world-class food and drink. It takes months, if not years, to put together events like this, and it's surely the sort of thing Glasgow should be aspiring to do. It's had plenty of time, after all.

Food brings people together like nothing else. As it prepares to host 6500 athletes from 70 countries plus thousands of spectators and visitors over almost three weeks, let's hope Glasgow can share its secrets with us sooner rather than later.

cate.devine@theherald.co.uk

Twitter: @catedvinewriter