Catering training day in Bristol promotes sustainability in care
Evolve Care Group holds training day for 25 caterers from across the south-west at National Catering Equipment Centre
Nisbets in Bristol – the National Catering Equipment Centre – has hosted a second training day for 25 catering team members from Evolve Care Group, which operates nursing and care homes across the south west and specialises in care. The session built on the success of the first training day, held in June, this time with a focus on sustainability in catering.
Photo courtesy of Evolve Care Group
Sustainability is about using resources efficiently, so provides economic benefits to a care home setting as well as helping to reduce environmental impact.
Over the course of the training day, participants were encouraged to explore innovative methods for reducing waste, creatively repurposing surplus ingredients and adapting simple recipes into popular favourites. The teams were taught how to prepare three basic soup recipes, with chef Joe Oliver from Creed Foodservice then demonstrating how to elevate each one by adding just a few extra ingredients.
The teams also experimented with making bread in various shapes and flavours. In doing so, they discovered how small, mindful changes can produce significant benefits in both flavour and sustainability.
The day also addressed the needs of care home residents – or ‘family members’ as they are known across the Evolve Care Group – who require a pureed diet. The teams were shown how to present pureed food so it has more visual appeal and to ensure it more closely resembles formed food. One tip was to mould pureed carrot into the shape of a whole carrot.
Chef Joe Oliver was keen to highlight the importance of the mealtime experience. He said: ‘The meals prepared by these kitchen teams could be among the most meaningful moments for family members, which is why every meal should feel special.’
Having attended the training day, several participants said they felt motivated by seeing their progress since the last session. They also felt proud of the fact that they could turn a simple dish such as soup into something that could bring great pleasure to family members.
A third catering training day swiftly followed, this time with a Christmas theme. The participating teams were also asked to demonstrate their soup-making skills from the previous session, using a few extra ingredients to add some festive cheer – while at the same time showing how much they’d learned.
Last month, we reported on the Evolve Care Group’s care academy training programme, and its recent focus on ‘Touch’ and manual handling.
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