ARARAT chef Bruce Thomas is on a mission to improve food for the elderly residents in aged care facilities.
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In order to achieve his goal, Mr Thomas joined 29 other chefs in visiting Australian cook, food author, restaurateur and food manufacturer, Maggie Beer at her property in South Australia’s Barossa Valley.
Maggie oversees ‘The Maggie Beer Foundation’ which, according to its Facebook page, “seeks to bring about life-altering change to the wellbeing of the elderly, by having access to food full of flavour and nutrition.”
A chef for 36 years who has worked in the Ararat Retirement Village kitchen for the past 11, it was an experience of a lifetime for Mr Thomas.
The former restaurant chef spent three days at the Maggie Beer Foundation’s inaugural education program, listening to lectures and watching cooking demonstrations, as well as participating in an aged care mystery box challenge.
The group was split into six teams of five, and each one had to make meals out of the ingredients specified in their selected box. A camera crew followed their every move as part of Maggie Beer’s television program, “Cook and the Chef”, reunion.
“It was some of the best food I’ve seen,” Mr Thomas said of the mystery box challenge results.
“While we already provide great home cooked meals, I’ve come back to Ararat with the fire back in the belly I guess. It (The Maggie Beer experience) has given me motivation to take it to the next level for our residents.”
Mr Thomas also wants to remove the stigma of meals that are being served in aged care facilities.
“When you’re working in aged care, there is this perception that we’re serving up mush. Yes, some people need texture modified food but not everyone.”
Ararat Retirement Village focuses on homestyle meals, and Mr Thomas can spend up to nine hours in the kitchen.
“We make 98 per cent of the things we serve, that included morning and afternoon teas. It’s a big job, but I love cooking,” he said.
It is hoped that in six months time, Ararat Retirement Village will see an expanded meal service.
“Basically in eight to 10 years time, we’ll have the ‘Baby Boomer’ generation coming in, who’ve been brought up with different foods, so we’ve got to be ready for them.”
