| Many of these
products did not meet the nutritional requirements of hospitals.
Other foods were the wrong package sizes, unsuitable for cold
plating or just too expensive.
How times have changed.
Now there is a wide variety of high quality prepared foods suitable
for re-heating in ovens or retherm carts, and there is enough
competition among producers to keep prices reasonable.
Nestlé Canada, Campbell Soup Company
and Marsan Foods led the way, but now they face competition from a
growing number of companies in Ontario and other parts of Canada.
Fishery Products International
launched its Sea Cuisine line of fully prepared healthcare fish entrées
last year.
Sara Lee Canada recently came out
with precut cakes and individual crumb cakes which are ready to
serve and fit the dishes of all meal delivery systems.
Otter Valley Foods of Tillsonburg
offers more than 50 centre-of-the-plate entrées, as well as
portioned proteins, sauces, gravies and starches - all designed
specifically for healthcare.
Private Recipe Ltd. has a
federally-inspected plant in Brampton where it focuses on clinical
meals, required in most acute care and some long-term facilities.
Menu items include minced and puréed proteins and casseroles, salt
free soups, and meals which are suitable for renal diets as well as
for lactose and gluten-free diets.
Hospital Food Services in Ottawa,
which started life as a central commisionary for several local
hospitals, now makes more than 700 items and provides custom-made
items throughout Ontario. In other provinces food suppliers have
geared up to meet the new healthcare demands and are eyeing the
lucrative Ontario market.
Hub Meat Packers of Moncton, N.B. is
one such company. It has a wide selection of fully cooked, sized,
frozen, ready-to-serve meats, including roast beef, corned beef and
ham. Its roast beef, with no added sodium, is widely used in Ontario
hospitals.
Strong Farms in Centreville, N.B. has
a complete line of potato products and vegetables. Their potato
items are now available in Ontario.
McCain Foods, based in Florenceville,
N.B., sells a wide range of frozen products across Canada. It
supplies many items to hospital cafeterias and kiosks, and recently
developed a couple of pizzas that are compatible with cold plate
assembly systems.
On the other side of the country,
Vanderpol's of Abbottsford, B.C. makes a broad assortment of fully
prepared frozen egg products, including omelettes, scrambled eggs,
boiled eggs, french toast and specialties such as Baja rolls and
zero cholesterol products. Vanderpol's products are now in Ontario
hospitals.
| Healthcare
food cost comparisons |
| . |
1995 |
1996 |
| Baked
chicken breast (90g) |
1.62 $ |
1.23
$ |
| Baked
fish fillet (120g) |
4.10
$ |
1.05
$ |
| Meatloaf
(75g) |
0.90 $ |
0.72
$ |
| Cooked
roast beef (84g) |
1.90
$ |
1.00
$ |
| Creamed
soups (150g) |
0.65
$ |
0.43
$ |
| Broth
soups (150g) |
0.50
$ |
0.30
$ |
Note:
Cost based on 10% distributor mark-up and averaged in category
Source:
Maclean Food Consulting Inc. |
|
