By Jennifer Gish, Albany Times Union, N.Y.
May 13–The CDPHP cafeteria buzzes with lunchtime activity. Employees surround the soup and salad station, where a sign about the health benefits of whole grains rests not far from a large bowl of organic quinoa Waldorf salad.
And Todd Wolfe, district chef for the food service company Eurest, a division of Compass, stands behind the entree station preparing bowls of made-to-order Vietnamese Pho, explaining that the dark grain offered as an option in the healthy soup is a fiber-rich black rice.
Meanwhile, only a few people linger in the more traditional side of the cafeteria, where burgers and fries still have a home.
Two years ago, the health insurance company decided it was time to live by the message it relays to its customers and took a look at its own Albany office.
“If we’re out there promoting healthy food choices, healthy living, all of that, then it’s got to start at home,” says Mary Ann Roberts, health educator for CDPHP.
Today, almost 25 percent of the cafeteria offerings are organic. Frozen vegetables are off the menu in favor of fresh ones. Recipes are vetted by dietitians, and the nutritional information is passed on to employees. The recently introduced steel-cut oats, which are higher in fiber than regular oatmeal, are such a hot item during breakfast that sales outpace traditional oatmeal about four to one.
“I didn’t want to do standard meatloaf, comfort food things that were just sitting in a pan. We wanted to keep it light,” Wolfe says. “Things that we thought wouldn’t work, worked.”
The wellness committee sponsors Weight Watchers sessions, healthy cooking classes and an occasional “The Biggest Loser”-style weight loss contest that in two years has netted an estimated 4,000-pound weight loss among the more than 700-employee company.
Employees can use the company’s in-office fitness center free of charge, “walking meetings” are sometimes held rather than boardroom-based ones, and Roberts says they plan to host a farmers market at the site at least every other week to encourage employees to buy fresh, local food at affordable prices.
Roberts says the goal is not to force lifestyle changes on people, but to offer them the options. Since the cafeteria had its health-conscious makeover, she says employees have asked her for resources on managing their blood pressure and diabetes.
And employees like Errol Limani, a business analyst, say the quality of the food (with entrees that don’t break $7) make the switch an easy sell.
“The thing about the healthy food is that it’s very appealing,” he says. “You don’t think of it as healthy food. It’s a restaurant-quality platter.”
Jennifer Gish can be reached at 454-5089 or by e-mail at [email protected].
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