In response to ongoing inquiries by the 100 Mile House Free Press about menu items no longer freshly prepared and/or cooked by Interior Health staff in the 100 Mile District General Hospital cafeteria, IH support services manager Bernadette Schultheiss made the following comments on Aug. 16
“It is important to clarify that we did not make wholesale changes to our meals or practices at 100 Mile – fewer than dozen items were actually changed. Our priority was to meet reduced-sodium requirements and to allow food services staff more time to focus of specialty meals for residents with specific dietary/texture needs.
“We are now bringing in quiche, meat sauce, meatloaf and pork cutlets – entrees that were previously made on-site. We continue to make roast beef and roast pork entrees in the 100 Mile kitchen.
“Our pastas and rice are prepared on-site, with the exception of lasagna, which we were already bringing in. We also make the majority of potato dishes in-house, but we are now bringing in roasted and scalloped potatoes that are made off-site. These are items that did take up significant time for our staff.
“Lunch and breakfast items are made primarily on-site, as was always the case.
“When we changed in the menu in July, we moved to bringing in all our soups. However, we are planning to move back to making our own soups on-site twice a week and bringing in prepared soups on other days, which is what was happening prior to July.
“The revised menu was a starting point for us, and we will continue to review how things are going in order to meet the needs and preferences of our residents with a focus on the sodium requirements and resident preferences.
“We do try and bring in fresh produce when it is available in season. We do make a variety of fresh salads on site. We use frozen mixed and other vegetables (ex. beans) – again, this was what we were doing prior to adjusting our menu. It’s important to note that frozen vegetables do maintain their nutritional value.”
