Not that long back we talked about improving our eating experience by involving all our senses in the process. Tasting and smelling food items is one thing, but researchers from a gastronomic institute in Italy claimed that we all should try and strike up a resonance with what is on our dinner plate and getting a very literal feel for it.
Well after that our attention has been piqued by the results of a recent experiment run by a drinks company – and the results have caught many within the beverage and catering industry by storm.
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Earlier on this year it transpired that five portions of fruit and vegetables a day may not be enough and that figure should be revised upwards to seven.
To quickly recap, the research, conducted by scientists from University College London, stated that having at least seven healthy portions was associated with a 42% lower risk of death.
This came at a time when the World Health Organisation is warning the childhood obesity is on track to become the norm.
One question that people have been constantly asking since the results of the study were made public is ‘how do I fit seven servings in to my eating routine?’
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It is so close that we can already visualise butter melting into lightly toasted hot cross buns; guiltily take pleasure from a plethora of indulgent Easter eggs and frankly, we cannot wait for our traditional roasted leg of lamb sat on the kitchen table come Sunday afternoon.
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The Nationwide Caterers Association (NCASS) has been collecting signatures opposing a piece of legislation that it claims could cause irrevocable damage to all areas of the catering industry.
Whether you are running a catering business large or small, keeping a tab on your expenditure is vital to secure a long term future. Whether it be increasing energy of food prices or and growth in administrative fees, all outgoings are rigorously monitored and compared with incomings.
As one supermarket chain says, every little helps.
Well, in the European Parliament, MEP’s have been in consultation about bringing in new changes to EU Regulation 882/2004 which, it is claimed, will see a change in funding parameters for an establishment that undergoes a hygiene inspection.
Voting took place yesterday.
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Some foods can perk you up a little bit, meaning that if you cannot fit a little siesta into your daily schedule and are wanting to stay away from heavily caffeinated pick-me-ups like supersized lattes and neat espressos, then these bites can give you a little boost of energy.
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With new legislation coming into effect for the new academic year, many schools still do not have adequate facilities to cater for children entitled to meals.
New figures, released over the past couple of days, suggest that nearly 3,000 primary still are not ready.
More than 1,700 institutions do not have a functioning kitchen either.
These schools will either have to employ external caterers, and get the meals delivered, or use neighbouring amenities and transport items in themselves.
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How long are you prepared to wait for your food after ordering?
Well, it appears that the average time customers are willing to linger in restaurants around making small talk clocks in at less than sixteen minutes
The analysis, of some 5,000 UK based consumers was conducted by Peach Factory and aimed to look into the impact that waiting times had on the hospitality industry.
Statistics thrown up in the data concluded that the people of Britain liked to be expediently served.
The figure of sixteen minutes decreases to twelve minutes and twenty-seven seconds for those waiting in pubs whilst it drops even further to a miniscule six minutes and eighteen seconds for those who order in fast food chains.
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The common consensus has been that eating five portions of fruit and vegetables is the healthy target hit per day, but new research shows that the figure should be increased to seven in order to prolong lives.
A study of over 65,000 people indicated that the more fresh fruit and vegetables consumed, the less likely they were to die – at any age. It is said that this new seven a day initiative would further cut the risk of people dying from cancers and heart disease.
Currently, the NHS recommended that everybody has five different servings of roughly 80g a day. This latest piece of research was carried out by people from University College London (UCL) used the National Healthy Survey, collecting their data through questionnaires and other methods, looking at individual diets and lifestyles.
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Some pupils from a Lincolnshire primary school swapped the classroom for the great outdoors as they headed out on a fact-finding mission to a local egg-farm in Beckingham.
The children were some of the first from the county to take part in an initiative that aims to inform people of school-going age about where the food on their plate comes from, and how it gets there.
During the day the kids were treated to a special behind the scenes lesson that was concerned about the lifestyle of the hens, what they do on a day to day basis, where they play and where they lay their eggs.
How do you eat?
And for those who answered ‘with a knife and fork’ you may be right, in a literal sense, but for those that replied by saying ‘with your hands’ you are onto a winner.
The real question is how do you eat with your senses?
Taste is an obvious one, as is sight, but what about touch, smell and sound?
According to researchers at the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo, Italy, people have forgotten how to engage all their senses when consuming their food. By default, Shona Miller, a student at the institution claims, the majority of us rely too much on the visual aspects of a dish as we have become accustomed to being bombarded with colour and imagery through a continuous exposure to advertising.
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Author
Damien Wilde