Organic Food Coming to Hospitals in Scotland

Thu 1 Jul 2004

3:21pm (UK)
Organic Food Growing on Hospital Menus

By Laura Elston, Deputy Court Correspondent, PA News

Patients could soon be tucking into organic food in hospital as part of a new drive to provide healthier NHS menus, the Prince of Wales heard today.

Pesticide-free strawberries were supplied and used for the first time this week at St George¹s Hospital in Tooting, south London, as part of the two-year venture.

Charles, whose Duchy Originals brand is one of the most successful organic products in the UK, visited the hospital to meet farmers and organisers involved in the scheme.

The Hospital Food Project run by London Food Link in partnership with the Soil Association aims to increase the supply of organic food to four pilot sites ­ St George¹s, the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust, South London and Maudesley NHS Trust and Ealing Hospital.

The scheme is also working towards using local businesses to boost the communities¹ economies.

Three hundred punnets of organic strawberries were brought into St George¹s this week ­ the project¹s first delivery.

This time, the summer dessert with non-organic cream was only available to staff and visitors in the restaurant at the price of £1.30 a portion, but organisers intend to provide patients with organic options as soon as possible.

Alison Vincent-Edward, catering manager for the St George¹s Trust, said: ³We sold out. It was strawberries and cream for Wimbledon week.

³We¹re looking at organic apples that could be used for patients and staff.²

While 500 grams of ordinary strawberries cost £1.35 from the supplier, the same amount of an organic version of the fruit costs £2.

However, food produced organically contains fewer contaminants such as pesticides and antibiotics and prohibits genetically-modified organisms.

The fresh products also spend less time in storage, making them better for nutrition since vitamin C content declines immediately after harvest.

Lord Peter Melchett, policy director of the Soil Association, speaking on whether the hospital money would be better spent on other services, said: ³If you want the people who work in hospital and who stay in hospital to stay healthy and get healthy, they need a healthy diet.²

He cited the case of the Cornwall NHS Trust, which he said found that organic dairy ice cream containing fruit had more nutrients than a special package of medicine used to boost patients who were in need of improving their dietary intake.

He added: ³If it¹s done by local traders and that¹s going to generate more jobs, more jobs means less sickness.

³If people are in work and the local economy is doing well, fewer people are sick.²

The NHS spends about £500 million on food each year, serving more than 300 million meals in some 1,200 hospitals.

Lord Melchett said he was hopeful that in the future there might be completely organic menus available in hospitals.

³I think it will eventually stop ­ it will take a while,² he said.

Charles, whose Duchy Home Farm in Gloucestershire is organic, met suppliers including Yasmeen Rashid, managing director of Organic India, which provides produce for supermarket meals.

The Prince spotted some of his own Duchy Originals products on display.

³He knew that the Beef and Ale casserole was a good seller,² Ms Rashid said.

A mini food market showing off pesticide-free fruit, veg, milk and eggs was constructed inside the hospital for the Royal visit.

The Hospital Food Project is funded by King¹s Fund of which Charles is president, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund.

Latest News:

  http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm