How to help nursing homes reduce food waste?

There are more than 900 nursing homes in Norway that account for 40 000 occupants. 80% of the care centers occupants are long-term residents. That means there are approximately 11.6 million hot meals served annually. Elderly care centers produce nearly 72% of all food waste produced in the public sector.

We are here to help! In this post, you will find practical tips to reduce food waste in nursing homes and improve sustainable food management in elderly care.

Read more about how our software works in the healthcare industry here. 

Collect data

Perhaps the most important step, collect data and analyze results! Start by taking measurements. Get to know the scale of the food waste in your facility and control your progress over time.

This also includes observations. Do you know which kind of meals and what type of food are discarded the most by elderly care center residents?

• What types of meals or ingredients are discarded most often?
  
  
• Is it meat, vegetarian options, vegetables, pasta, or desserts?
  
  
• Are there trends in plate waste or kitchen waste?

Identify at which stage the food is wasted the most:

Knowing when food waste occurs in your care center is just as important as knowing how much is wasted. Food waste can happen at several stages of the process—from storage to preparation to serving.

• Storing – Is food wasted due to improper storage temperatures or missed expiration dates?
  
  
• Preparation – Are leftovers generated during food prep?
  
  
• Serving – Are portion sizes too large for residents?
  
  

By breaking down the stages, you can identify problem areas and apply tailored solutions.

What kind of details can help you to reduce the amount of food being wasted?

Match food supply to demand

Order food in accordance with current capacity. One of the most effective ways to reduce waste is by ordering food based on actual demand. Overestimating how much food is needed often leads to excess that either spoils or ends up in the trash.

Ensure that your kitchen staff or procurement team adjusts food orders according to the current number of residents. If you cooperate with a Central Kitchen in your Municipality, make sure you update a number of the residents regularly. 

Additionally, observe actual consumption patterns. Do nursing home residents eat less than expected?If meals are consistently coming back unfinished, it may be time to review portion sizes and recipes. This will help align food preparation with what residents can and want to eat, reducing both food waste and costs.

Make small changes to increase food intake

Encouraging residents to eat more of their meals can naturally reduce waste. Research from the University of Stavanger shows that replacing dinnerware in elderly care centers from white to colored increases food intake by care center residents. That could help in both malnutrition problems prevention as well as reducing food waste!

Use smart inventory tools such as Total Ctrl

TotalCtrl introduces a software that improves inventory management in the nursing homes and in healthcare. Gain control, make food management easier and faster, reach sustainable goals, and get valuable time to focus on helping patients that need you.