Workplace foodservice; perception of quality and trust
Introduction
The workplace can be a supportive and influential factor in the promotion of a healthy diet. A healthy and vital workforce is an asset to any organisation and initiatives within this environment reflect health promotion strategies advocated by the World Health Organisation (2004). The European workforce is increasingly diverse in terms of gender, ethnicity and culture; it is also increasingly older which implies a greater potential and prevalence of chronic disease (Zwetsloot, VanScheppingen, Dijkman, Heinrich, & Den Besten, 2010). Health and wellbeing are key topics in the debate on improving the lives of individuals in society and are directly linked to labour force participation, productivity and sustainability (Eurofound, 2013). Health and wellbeing at work are key elements of the overall Europe 2020 strategy for growth, competitiveness and sustainable development (European Commission, 2010). A healthy economy depends on a healthy population. Without this, employers lose out on worker productivity and citizens are deprived of potential longevity and quality of life.
The European Treaties legislation (2009) and policy measures recognise the importance of preserving the health of the workforce and it is here where effective menu labelling could support the healthy lifestyle of employees (European Union, 2007). Health is seen as a factor that codetermines the functioning of people (human and social capital) and can contribute to an organisations value. The workplace could be a central venue for influencing dietary behaviour and could be instrumental in reducing employee's risk of developing chronic disease (Quintiliani, Poulsen, & Sorensen, 2010). The workplace is a setting where food is consumed on a regular basis, and can form an important part of the overall diet, as people spend an extensive proportion of their waking hours at work what they consume is of importance (Department of Health, 2005). The workplace has been recognised as an important platform for health promotion, and where many employers are investing in initiatives that foster employee wellbeing as part of development of their human resources (Heinen & Darling, 2009).
Frequent out-of-home consumption has been associated with higher energy intakes, and a higher prevalence of overweight and obesity (Orfanos et al. 2009). This positive relationship between the rise in consumption of food prepared outside the home and the increasing prevalence of obesity is a major global health and wellbeing societal challenge. Additionally, most consumers seem to underestimate the nutrient content of their dish selection (Bates, Burton, Howlett, & Huggins, 2011). Given the possible mismatch between the perceived and actual nutritional value, the inclusion of information from a menu will benefit consumers by effectively transforming the nutrient content, a typical credence attribute, into a search attribute (Karstens & Belz, 2006). We would also argue that the fundamental human right of informing consumers what they are eating is commonly neglected however, from December 2014 there is an obligation under EU FIC 2011 for allergen information to be supplied on the menu or chalk boards in an easily visible and legible format (Mazurkiewicz-Pizo & Pachuca-Smulska, 2012). Any initiative encouraging individuals to eat more ‘attentively’ could help to reduce calorie intake while also allowing those with intolerances and specific dietary requirements such as diabetics the freedom to eat away from home.
Past food scares and malpractices in the food system have affected the extent to which consumers trust the food they eat (Coveney, 2008). Trust is an important component of health and wellbeing through its impact on food choice and confidence in expert advice (Coveney, 2008). Moreover, in times where the consumer takes a less active role in the food cycle, information allowing transparency of production is important (Kjaernes, 2006).
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Theoretical context
The understanding of the role of trust in food is mainly influenced by humanistic understandings of trust with Luhmann (1979) and Giddens (1991) being the most frequently cited authors (Salvatore & Sassatelli, 2004). For the purposes of this paper, trust is mainly categorised as interpersonal trust between individuals and institutions (Meyer, Ward, Coveney, & Rogers, 2008). It is the latter that has been the main focus of attention (Lassoued & Hobbs, 2015). According to these different
Focus groups
Focus groups were selected as the methodology for the study due to their ability to elicit discussion of participants' perceptions that can provide a rich description of viewpoints and experiences from many angles (Then, Rankin, & Ali, 2014). Structured focus groups (n = 4) were conducted with employees who regularly, at least twice a week, use the canteen at their place of work and were recruited using purposive sampling. Email invitations were sent out to various employers in Germany and the
Preceding factors for making food choice
Participants of the study shared their experience from different styles of workplace. There was a common consent that there is less expectation of the food sold at work than food consumed at home or when eating out in a restaurant, especially in regards to taste and quality. Particularly dish descriptions, taste and visual appearance of dishes have led to this expectation of inferior quality which was common amongst participants in both countries.
“I saw on the menu last week that there was
Discussion
Food choice is a complex phenomenon, influenced by the characteristics of the chosen food, characteristics of the consumer making the choice and the context in which the choice is made (Machín, Giménez, Vidal, & Ares, 2014). Results of this study show that food choice in the workplace setting is not only influenced by underlying criteria of importance and characteristics of the food itself but also context dependent. Participants expect inferior quality of food based on their previous
Conclusion
Food purchasing habits have changed in a retail setting and when eating out commercially, leading to pressure on public sector foodservice to keep up with current consumer demands and expectations. Furthermore, the food service sector is in principle connected to both food producers and consumers which enables an influence in supply as well as a need to satisfy. Contemporary trends demonstrate that consumers put a high emphasis on local and traditional food. Additionally large consumer segments
Acknowledgement
This Project has been supported by Solutions for Chefs: www.solutionsforchefs.com and the FoodSMART project, funded from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Programme under grant agreement no. 643999.
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