Catering for Good, a Victorian Government-funded directory connecting workplaces with nutritious food, is now live in East Gippsland with local businesses in Bairnsdale and Lakes Entrance already on board.
The initiative, delivered through the Healthy Eating Advisory Service, supported by the Health Promotion Team at Gippsland Lake Complete Health (GLCH), provides a simple solution for workplaces seeking healthier catering while supporting local food businesses to expand their offerings.
“I think a website like Catering for Good is wonderful to get your name out there,” said Renee Egan from Tradies Food and Catering in Bairnsdale.
“And the healthy foods aspect of it is awesome as well.”
Catering for Good addresses increasing demand from workplaces wanting to provide nutritious food options.
As part of statewide efforts to support healthier eating, all Victorian Government departments are now aligned to the Good Food Policy, while hospitals and health services have implemented the Healthy Choices Framework to improve the nutritional quality of food and drinks offered in their facilities.
For Tradies Food and Catering, joining the directory was a strategic move.
“We do a lot of in-house food options, and we wanted to figure out how to expand that,” Renee said.
“We thought catering to provide good, healthy food for people would be the next right step.”
The directory is free to join, with the Health Promotion team at GLCH supporting local businesses through the onboarding process.
Even during a busy period following the recent arrival of Renee and Brady’s new baby, the support from GLCH remained consistent.
“It probably opened my eyes up a little bit more to what to look for in healthy eating on the dietary side,” Renee said.
“I thought it was quite handy, especially the suggestions that came up for how we could change things to make it healthier.”
GLCH health promotion officer Renate Hall said the directory also supported workplaces to develop their own food and drink policies aligned to Healthy Choices guidelines, making it easier to meet these requirements while supporting local businesses.
She encouraged local workplaces organising catering to use the Catering for Good directory.
“The directory helps you find healthier catering options for your workplace that are good for people, good for the environment, and good for the community. Healthier menu options are listed on each caterer’s page,” Renate said.
Renee at Tradies Food and Catering encouraged locals to check out the directory.
“Get onto it and start using it. The more businesses that get on there and start looking for healthy options, the more well-known the portal’s going to be.”
“When everybody uses it and then there’s that one business that doesn’t, everyone will be like, ‘Oh, this is a website we use. It’s good, get onto it.'”
Find local healthy caterers by searching for the Catering for Good Directory online. For more information about the requirements to join the directory, please contact GLCH’s Health Promotion team.
