Home Nutrition & Hydration This month Kirsty meets

This month Kirsty meets

by Kirsty Kirsty

Welcome to Kirsty Meets!

Each month I meet key stakeholders and business leaders in the social care sector. This month I met Andy Williams, Care Sector Specialist at Creed Foodservice. I caught up with Andy to discuss catering for the next generation, the evolution in care home hospitality, and cost-management solutions.

So Andy, can you tell us a little about Creed Foodservice? 

We were founded in 1972 and are now one of the UK’s leading independent family-owned foodservice providers.

Care is one of the key sectors that we work with and is at the heart of our operations. Currently we supply around 600 care homes across the country. Our specialist team are well versed with the challenges and opportunities that this sector presents.

Last year Creed released industry-leading research regarding the next generation of residents: ‘Baby Boomers.’ What are the key findings of this research?

Surveying those aged 58-76 across the country who fit into the ‘Baby Boomer’ category showed the importance of food and drink to this generation, whose expectations are very different to those currently living in care facilities.

Our research found a staggering 95% of Baby Boomers said that the food and drink provision is ‘important’ when choosing a care home. Furthermore, eight out of ten said they would pay more for a premium offering if their budget allowed. High quality, varied food and drink provision will no longer just be a nice to have, but instead a fundamental part of the decision-making process. Key here is the opportunity for our care customers to grow occupancy rates, revenue and profit if they can respond to the upcoming demands. 

In what ways are Creed evolving to meet the new demands illuminated by this research?

Using the insights from the research we’re readying ourselves and our customers for the next generation to enter care homes. In many care spaces we’re expecting to see more money spent on catering as the baby boomer generation bring with them more wealth.

Another recent study by KAM Media looked at the ‘Golden Years’ generation (65years+)[1], and has found that spending by this age group has increased by 75% between the years of 2001 to 2018, amounting to an average drinking and dining-out spend of £158 per person each month. When considering that by 2040, older people will be spending 63p of every pound in the UK economy, it’s essential we understand how this will look, and how we can meet the demand for top notch hospitality provision in a care setting too.

“We’re expecting to see more money spent on catering as the baby boomer generation bring with them more wealth.”

When speaking on hospitality in the sector, questions of cost-management are necessarily implicated. How does Creed navigate this?

We’re here to help our customers manage their budgets by providing the right tools and support to do so.

There are of course challenges in many care spaces when it comes to tight budgets. We work with our customers to explore how these challenges can be minimised through careful planning. It’s not only about looking at the type and quantity of food being bought, but also how it’s held, prepped and served too.

We’ve launched virtual webinars on cost management, as well as a Cost Management Guide to support our care customers when it comes to menu planning, physically preparing food, but also staffing correctly too.

And finally Andy, where can we learn a little more about Creed Food Service?

We’d love to chat to you about your care catering provision. Visit the Creed website: www.creedfoodservice.co.uk, or pick up the phone to speak to me directly: 07753 498 980.


[1] https://kam-media.co.uk/golden-years-request/

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