Story 32: The Evolution of Food

Food Services: Then And Now

How Far We've Come!

QCH has been recognized several times for the outstanding food we have served over the years! In 2018, an article by the Ottawa Citizen quoted patient Dan Slatter, saying “I’d rather eat here than at the Château Laurier.” With high praise like this, we want to take a look back at the evolution of Food Services from the beginning to now to see how far we have come!

Building The First Menu

The kitchen at QCH was built with the intention of serving only out-sourced food items. Hardhatters were tasked with taste-testing different vendors to pick the final foods that the hospital would serve to patients and staff. Some early favourites were beef stew and pineapple meatballs!

The Evolution Of Food

We were the first hospital to use all outsourced food 40 years ago. Then, we evolved to making meals that could be heated up, almost like TV dinners. Now...all meals are cooked in-house with fresh, locally sourced ingredients!

The Evolution Of Ordering

The Evolution Of Waste

F.R.E.D was a recycling system in the cafeteria that launched in 1995. It had a conveyor belt that went right from the cafeteria to the dish room to sort through disposables! This helped people really start to think about recycling. In 1995, this was a big innovation!

The Waste Pro “Pulper”

Now we also have other mechanisms in place to help the environment! One of those includes the Waste Pro “Pulper” that removes excess liquid from organic waste, reducing landfill waste, which in turn lowers transportation emissions, and allows the remaining material to be repurposed into fertilizer.

The Healing Power Of Nutrition

“47 to 50% of the patients that come in the hospital right now are malnourished,” says Caralan Dams, Manager of Food & Clinical Nutrition Services.

Caralan says that food is a large part of healing: “It is part of medicine. It is part of their overall recovery, and I believe that it plays a really important part. Eventually [food] would play a part in lowering the length of stay if we can get these patients nourished properly and healed and on their way.”

Caralan has been with QCH for 35 years, and has played a key role in supporting the innovative changes to the food we serve the staff, patients and guests who visit QCH each year.