Thinking of treating your staff to daily or weekly meals? Providing food regularly to staff could be a great motivator for them. It is a way of acknowledging their efforts and giving them a small reward for all their hard work.

Food is also a way to attract talent to your organisation. Young people increasingly want so much more from work, and food is one way to make them feel the company cares about them.

That does not mean that food for staff must be elaborate or expensive, like catering lunches. Simple offerings such as fruit or healthy bar snacks can provide the ideal snacks for having better food in the office. The important thing is creating the right office food menu.

Here at The Fruit People HQ, we know a thing or two about office food, and this article will give tips on creating the best office menu.

What is an office food menu, and why is it essential to create one?

An office menu is a list of food or beverage options provided to staff by an organization or its approved food vendor or catering provider (like us!).

Inadequate nutrition can reduce productivity by as much as 20%. So, how can you encourage employee productivity by offering the right food options?

Consider everyone’s food preferences

While you may want to provide food that the majority of people love, you also need to consider allergies and food reactions within the team. What looks like a clever idea on paper can be terrible if you have staff who are gluten-free, vegan etc. It is good practice to label whatever food item is on the menu with the ingredients used to make it. This way, everyone is aware of whatever it is they are eating.

Office pantry essentials

 

Offer a variety of choices

When planning to have food or lunches delivered to your office, you must offer various healthy options to your employees. It could be vegan or Halal food, depending on what school of thought your staff subscribes to.

That is why we tend to offer a mixture of weekly boxes & snack boxes, along with the ability to custom build boxes so there is something for everyone.

Different breakfast options like fruits, bread, pastry, almonds, tea, granola bars, muesli

 

Keep the office menu fresh

Providing the same items on the menu each time can become monotonous and boring. As much as possible, keep food classes the same while varying the items offered on the menu. This small element of surprise will keep the team guessing what is on the menu this time and will make mealtimes with colleagues more fun.

Adding seasonal fruits is one way of spicing up the menu. For example, here in Ireland, it would be difficult for most people to know when the best time to have pears is, or if there even is seasonality for things like bananas or pineapples.

Feel free to check out the complete list of seasonal fruits here.

A range of office food options by the Fruit People

 

Include a lot of beverages on the menu

Studies have shown that being hydrated is associated with better mental performance and cognition. It can also help to combat tiredness and fatigue. All these benefits combine to achieve greater productivity at work. Try to include favourites like bottled water, juices, and soft drinks.

keep cool with fruit

 

Consider the cost of an in-house chef vs. outsourcing

Large businesses like Google and Facebook can afford to bring an in-house chef to make fancy meals for staff each day at the office, but I am assuming you are not Facebook or Google.

So having an in-house chef in your office might be counter-productive for your business as this might add a strain to your operations and distract you from your core area of focus.

Best bet would be to outsource your office menu to professional food companies like us.

The fruit people supply food, fruits, beverages, and more to offices across Ireland. Feel free to contact us to create the best office menu for your organisation.