We've had a wonderful week sharing Nutrition and Hydration week with you all, sponsoring the Nottingham Evening Post Carer of the Year awards yesterday and we were thrilled to share the following report concerning the use of food moulds.
Peter Radford is a chef working with the Milford Care Group and is a customer of ours. He was interviewed this week by ITV Central News and they've posted the following write up on their website or you can scroll down to see it. When Jo spoke to Pete just after the interview he said "You planted the seed after I attended your workshop about the food moulds". We're very proud to be making a difference in the lives of people and helping enable dignified dining for all.
A company which runs six care homes across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire is believed to be one of the first to serve up pureed food that looks like meals.
Elderly residents at Milford Care homes who have difficulty swallowing food are benefiting from an initiative aimed at encouraging them to eat more.
People experience problems eating and drinking for a number of reasons, for example if they have had a stroke or suffer from dementia.
Adopting an idea from Germany, the pureed food is made to look like a meal again.
Using a thickening product called Gelea, a sausage will look like how a sausage should, and a carrot will look like a carrot etc.
Photo of the pureed food
Credit: ITV News Central
Peter, 48, a chef of many years who has worked for Milford Care for eight years, read an article about the food, known as 'smoothfood' in 2014 and decided to follow it up.
Peter said:
This product will help so many people on these smooth diets. They say you eat with your eyes first, so we hope that as these meals look more appetising our residents will be more tempted to eat them which will improve weights and their overall health and wellbeing."
It's been brilliant so far. We have trialled the meals with 20 residents and the feedback has been great. The staff are really enthusiastic to try this new technique and improve the lives of our residents.
– CHEF PETER
Photo of the pureed food
Credit: ITV News Central
Meals Peter has made using this process so far include chargrilled chicken breast with pineapple ring, meatballs with tomato sauce, and stuffed chicken.
Sheila Barwick, home manager at Milford House, said:
I think it's brilliant. Some of the residents said the pureed food they had before was like baby food so I can't wait for them to try it.
