How Sunnybrook feeds over a million people each year

So how often have you forgotten to eat breakfast? How about packing a lunch? It’s fair to say, many of us can’t even find the time to cook for ourselves everyday. Now imagine trying to feed over one million people every year.

Did you know?
Yearly food amounts reported by the food services division at Sunnybrook:

That’s what makes Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre’s Food Services Division so amazing. They do it, and make the process look simple. But going behind the scenes, I realized the key to success comes down to good planning and organization.

Food is delivered six days a week to a loading dock, and then immediately sorted into two giant walk-in fridges and one freezer. And then comes the fun part: preparing meals for different patient care units with different dietary requirements. And to say things are on a large scale, is quite simply an understatement. In just one shift, workers will scoop out nearly 600 bowls of cold cereal, make more than 300 sandwiches or prepare nearly six hundred servings of pudding and jello combined. I’ll bet the idea of making yourself some toast for breakfast doesn’t seem so bad now!

Once the meals are ready, they are loaded onto carts and brought up to the patient care units in service elevators. Special “retherm” carts (resembling large metal fridges) help heat hot food on one side of the tray, while keeping items on the other side, like milk, cold. It’s all thanks to a special insulated divider. Then the meal is ready for patients to enjoy.

If you think back to the last time you weren’t feeling well, you will probably remember that your appetite changed, too. And for in patients, it’s a similar scenario. Charles Chow, director of patient food services at Sunnybrook, tells me that comfort foods reign supreme. That includes items like soups, sandwiches and lots of juice. And not surprisingly, desserts are hardly ever left behind by patients. I guess it’s true, that a spoonful of sugar really does help the medicine go down!

And after the meal is over, you can imagine that there is a massive clean up effort. Food trays are loaded back onto carts and brought back to the hospital’s basement, where workers sort and load utensils, plates, bowls and cups into giant conveyor belt style dishwashers that are constantly working to keep up with demand. And Sunnybrook has one of only two specialized cart washers in Canada. Two go in, they spin in high heat, and voila! An extra level of protection in under two minutes.

Have a look at my video for a closer look behind the scenes. You’ll never take hospital food for granted again. And packing tomorrow’s lunch, may seem a little less taxing.