These past few months have been busy for the WA committee. We have organised two new member events and are planning more for the year, including our AGM & Excellence Awards presentation.

Our first event this quarter was a factory visit to one of our Platinum Supporters, Patties Foods in Osborne Park. Members were taken on a journey through the production processes, from goods receival through production processes to packing. Of note was the huge lasagne sheet production line which produces pasta onsite for the meal range. The tour was very informative, seeing largescale production equipment create products for meal solutions. The tour finished with a lovely lunch selected from the Patties range. We sincerely thank David Venn, Daniel Fox and their team for hosting our WA members and providing an insight into largescale meal manufacture.

Our second event was a professional development workshop hosted by another of our Platinum Supporters, Stoddart. This afternoon workshop was attended by Hospitality in Healthcare members and Stoddart invited guests from health and aged care. Gerard Bloor of Cadre Co, Shane Smith from Stoddart HQ and myself of Facts on Food provided engaging presentations on good kitchen design, cook chill methods – including sous vide and extended shelf life – and optimising your regeneration methods.

The workshop showed how to optimise kitchen workflows, production scheduling and waste reduction, with the aim of improving patient and aged care resident satisfaction by providing nutritious and appealing meal options. 

Participants enjoyed a range of delicious and beautifully presented meal items prepared by Stoddart’s chefs utilising the cooking and regeneration methods discussed during the workshop. We sincerely thank Paul Tiong, Sam McMahon and chefs for hosting the workshop.

Our next event will be the AGM & Excellence Awards night. Please look out for the invite in your email inbox. This is a highlight of the event calendar where we welcome nominees, supporters and members to celebrate the people, teams and projects that make the difference in Hospitality in Healthcare.

Lastly I’d like to thank our Branch Treasurer Jon Valentine for his contribution to the WA Committee. Jon has unfortunately had to step down due to increased work commitments. Thanks to Jon for being such a valuable committee member over the last few years. Your input will be missed but we look forward to seeing you at future events.

CHERYL