{"id":3974,"date":"2014-10-13T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-10-13T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/live-gordon-food-service.pantheonsite.io\/healthy-retail-options-for-healthcare-food-service\/"},"modified":"2023-02-01T14:16:48","modified_gmt":"2023-02-01T20:16:48","slug":"healthy-retail-options-for-healthcare-food-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gfs.com\/es-us\/ideas\/healthy-retail-options-for-healthcare-food-service\/","title":{"rendered":"Healthy Retail Options for Healthcare Food Service"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hospitals across the country are searching for healthier retail options in response to healthcare reform that urges improved quality and decreased cost, and an industry push for healthcare organizations to act as an example toward preventative wellness.<\/p>\n

One group calling for preventative wellness programs is Partnership for a Healthier America, founded in 2010 as an offshoot of (but not part of) first lady Michelle Obama\u2019s Let\u2019s Move! campaign. Partnership for a Healthier America\u2019s Hospital Healthy Food Initiative, launched in 2012, has 155 member hospitals nationwide so far. Members pledge to boost access to fruits and vegetables; make healthful meals more affordable; encourage healthier beverage choices; prepare foods in a more healthful way; label foods with nutrition information<\/a>; and market healthy foods in retail operations.<\/p>\n

How Healthcare Food Service Operators Can Get Started<\/h2>\n

A few basic nutritional principles form the basis of healthy menus: \u201cheart-healthy\u201d foods (i.e., foods with lower sodium, lower fat, and lower cholesterol); fewer simple carbohydrates (white bread, white rice, potatoes, etc.); and lower-calorie foods, says Annette Hinton, owner of Creative Culinary Consulting in Atlanta, Georgia.<\/p>\n

Healthy food isn\u2019t only about taking away; it\u2019s about adding, Hinton says. The big buzz is around \u201csuperfoods<\/a>,\u201d those that pack a significant nutritional punch for their calories. Berries and fruits in general are superfoods, as is dark chocolate that\u2019s at least 70 percent cocoa. So are dark-green leafy vegetables such as kale and spinach, and high-fat fish such as mackerel, sardines, and wild-caught salmon.<\/p>\n

Crafting A Healthy Menu<\/h3>\n

For food service operators, the key is to reduce sodium, fats, and simple carbohydrates while keeping\u2014and even boosting\u2014flavor. At Mansfield Hospital, part of MedCentral Health System, Caf\u00e9 335\u2019s hot entr\u00e9es boast the same nutritional guidelines as patient meals, including a sodium level no higher than 500 milligrams per serving. Beef lo mein, stuffed pork chops, and, for vegans, a stuffed portobello mushroom are among the dishes that appear on both patient trays and the caf\u00e9 menu. The 200-seat cafeteria got rid of its deep-fryers five years ago, before embarking on a renovation, explains Jill Bachelder, Manager of Food and Nutrition at the acute-care facility, licensed for 350 beds. When the remodeled facility opened, Bachelder didn\u2019t replace the fryers. Bachelder\u2019s menu tricks include adding lots of herbs and seasonings, working with skinless chicken breasts, and using ground turkey instead of hamburger in some dishes.<\/p>\n

Portion control can work wonders, too. Bachelder has reduced dessert portions to match what patients receive\u2014e.g., a tiny slice of cake or pie or a single ice-cream bar or fruit bar. She also portions fresh fruit and vegetables in single-serving cups and sells them for $1 in order to help customers meet the \u201cfive-a-day\u201d requirement suggested by nutritional guidelines.<\/p>\n

One idea that has caught on is to use highly flavored ingredients in small portions, says Gordon Food Service Non-commercial Marketing Specialist Nancy Geik, RD.<\/p>\n

\u201cBlue cheese, extra-sharp cheddar, Parmesan, sesame oil, red-pepper flakes, lemon zest, balsamic vinegar,\u201d Geik says, rattling off ingredients. \u201cIf you use these, you don\u2019t have to use a lot of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Geik notes that author and dietitian Ellie Krieger advocates using high-quality ingredients\u2014for instance Greek yogurt lightly laced with mayonnaise, instead of sour cream\u2014in the same fashion. As for meat, Geik calls it a \u201ccondiment\u201d rather than the main flavor.<\/p>\n

All recommend posting basic nutritional information\u2014calorie, fat, sodium, and carbohydrate content of dishes\u2014on the menu or a video screen, or making them available on request.<\/p>\n

Marketing Healthy Stealthily<\/h3>\n

Not every healthful ploy works. Bachelder says a trial of low-sodium bacon \u201cflopped\u201d so badly that she now offers bacon, but only four times a week instead of seven. She suggests that turkey and low-sodium pork sausage can also satisfy customers\u2019 cravings for breakfast meats.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a lesson in that: You can\u2019t force healthy on customers. The better idea: Stealth-market healthful options to customers.<\/p>\n

One trick: Rearrange foods. Geik says one of her hospital clients has redone the salad bar so that fresh fruits and vegetables are up front and higher-fat items, such as pasta salad and potato salad, are near the back. That same hospital offers indulgent chips and snacks, but they\u2019re displayed above or below eye level, while healthier, whole-grain baked chips get the prime eye-level spot. Bowls of fruit, not cookies and brownies, are placed near the cash register, where many customers make impulse buys.<\/p>\n

Another trick: Don\u2019t go overboard. \u201cIf it\u2019s too healthy, you\u2019ll lose the sale,\u201d Hinton says. \u201cRetail is about selling.\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hospitals across the country are searching for healthier retail options in response to healthcare reform that urges improved quality and decreased cost, and an industry push for healthcare organizations to act as an example toward preventative wellness. One group calling for preventative wellness programs is Partnership for a Healthier America, founded in 2010 as an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":3975,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[111,69],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3974","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-healthcare","category-running-your-business"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHealthy Retail Options for Healthcare Food Service<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Putting a focus on person-centered care, F806 requires healthcare operators to accommodate allergies, intolerances and food preferences.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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