With the newly strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards having come into force from July 1, providers and staff are ramping up their knowledge of this new framework.

The new Standard 6 – Food and Nutrition is set to have a widespread impact on chefs, dietitians, hotel services managers and other allied staff in aged care. Jennifer Arguelles, Accredited Practising Dietitian and Senior Nutritionist at Bega Foodservice points out a major focus is on providing aged care residents with greater choice and input into their meals.

“Many chefs and kitchen staff in aged care will be looking at getting more resident input into their menu options, as well as ensuring that nutritious snacks are always available outside of regular mealtimes,” Jennifer says.

“This can put more pressure on the kitchen, but one way of alleviating that is by sourcing quality readymade products from trusted suppliers which are suitable for the aged care market and in some cases have been specially formulated for them.

“For example, Bega Foodservice offers several different types of yoghurt with varying flavour profiles and nutritional compositions – including some with higher protein levels. We have Yoplait, Farmers Union Greek Style Yoghurt, and Dairy Farmers Thick and Creamy Yoghurt in portion control packs which are ideal to keep on hand for snacks, as well as in larger serve packs for use as back of house ingredients in cooking.

“If you look at Standard 6.3 which is about the provision of food and drinks, it’s important to make snacking options available to meet nutrition needs.  Expanding or having variation in options can help keep choices appetising and combat repetition and flavour fatigue. For example, Farmers Union Greek Style Yoghurt Pouches with their twist-open tops might take a moment of assistance to open, but can encourage self-feeding for those who might not have the dexterity to spoon yogurt from a tub.”

As our bodies age, our requirements for certain nutrients increase – so it’s important to step up the use of ingredients which deliver these needs. Most people know that dairy foods provide protein and calcium which is important for bone health and muscle maintenance respectively – but did you know that milk and yoghurt in particular contain many other essential nutrients?

These include iodine which can help with brain health, phosphorous which is beneficial for bone maintenance, vitamins B2, B5 and B12 which assist with energy delivery, and potassium which is important for hydration and contributes to muscle function.

“When it comes to delivering nutrients, dairy really packs a punch. The great thing about dairy is it’s a whole food, so it’s enjoyable for residents to have, and it also lends itself really well to fortifying foods,” Jennifer points out.

One way to do that is by using a product like Dairy Farmers Instant Whole Milk Powder to enrich full cream milk. “This basically creates a double strength milk which can then be used on breakfast cereal, in coffee/tea and milkshakes and can also be added to mashed potato, in white sauces and stirred through soups to fortify your existing recipes,” Jennifer recommends.