THE NUTRITION CONNECTION. A Newsletter for Nutrition Providers In San Diego County

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1 A Newsletter for Nutrition Providers In San Diego County Featuring * M.O.M. Meals On The Move 1,442 meals served! * Spotlight on Oceanside Wild West Texas BBQ * Q & A About Leftovers???????? * Wendy s Nutrition Corner More About Leftovers??????? Coming Event: January Nutrition Managers Meeting 1/20/09 Office Supply Exchange

2 Meals on the Move Ten providers served 1,442 Thanksgiving meals to homebound seniors. Community support also contributed to the success of the project. There was an overwhelming response to the appeal for delivery volunteers. Individuals and families delivered hot turkey dinners, flowers and placemats. Many AIS staff helped organize the deliveries. Many classrooms and scout troops provided over 2,000 adorable and festive placemats. The children s group leaders were happy to receive Certificates of Recognition to acknowledge and reinforce the concept of community involvement at an early age. We received several thank-you notes from our seniors,such as: The food was delicious and appreciated very much and You made an old lady very happy! We plan to get an earlier start for Mothers Day this coming year to have more providers participating in order to make the meals available in more zip codes. Remember M.O.M.!! Thank you Providers, Volunteers, AIS Staff and especially Marilyn Driscoll & Kristina Maxwell for making Thanksgiving Day extra special for the seniors!

3 Oceanside Great Western Barbeque Duke Bob V. Hats off to Oceanside Seniors!!! Tex John M. Seniors got in the spirit for a fun day of dining & dancing at the Oceanside Senior Citizens Center. Annie O & Doc Cloela & JoeT. Marshal Pierre Deputy Betty V. Sheriff Joe D.

4 Q & A About Leftovers Q: Can we re-serve cartons of milk that have been returned by seniors? A: Unfortunately, no, you cannot re-serve the milk. It needs to be discarded. You don t know how long it s been left out or whether it s been tampered with. If possible during the meal service, ask your customer if he/she wants milk. If he/she does, provide it. If he/she doesn t, you do not have to serve it. Q: What can we re-serve? A: Not very many things. Only individually sealed, non-perishable foods. So individually sealed items such as packaged crackers, condiments or margarine can be re-served/reused. You may choose not to reuse these; it s your choice. Any food item that has been served to the customer or put out for customers to serve themselves must be discarded. This includes bread, salsa, chips, open margarine in a dish, milk, salad bar ingredients, etc. Q: Are we permitted to donate leftovers from congregate meal service to a shelter in our community when we are unable to freeze or re-serve the leftovers? A: California Department of Aging Title 22 does not preclude making food donations but encourages minimizing leftovers. I recommend that you consider the following before deciding to donate your leftovers: The California Food Code allows for Food Facility Food Donations. It states in Article 7 Section that any food facility may donate food to a food bank or to any other nonprofit charitable organization for distribution to persons free of charge. You can read the full law by accessing the Food Code at:

5 . Nutrition Corner Wendy s Page???? More About Leftovers Why are there leftovers? Is it due to over ordering or over production? Think of your leftovers as money from your food budget. There are going to be some menu items that you will not be able to freeze or reuse and would probably otherwise discard. These would be the likely items for donation. If you are going to donate the leftovers, document the quantity and have the receiving agency sign for it. Document number of items or quantity in terms of cups or quarts. If you have gallons leftover, there is a major production problem that needs to be corrected. This information needs to be sent to the Nutrition Program Director and/or Food Service Manager. They need to know this information for planning purposes. Consider how the food will be packaged and transported to the site. Food safety procedures should be followed at your site (proper cooling, clean packaging and safe holding temperatures). Insist that the food be transported under proper refrigeration. Label food items with a use-by date. Call me for further guidance if you are considering donating food. A plan that works for all can be worked out. Wendy Shigenaga, RD

6 Nutrition Program Related Resources Senior Nutrition Community Web Site: The Nutrition Connection is posted on the website along with the latest nutrition information. Visit the San Diego Senior Nutrition website regularly for news about programs, new regulations and policies, links to resources forms. Check out the latest Program Memorandum postings Food Stamps for Seniors: Many seniors are eligible for Food Stamps. Visit Links to Resources for flyers to post and disseminate at your site to inform your senior clients about their possible eligibility for assistance. Good Things to Remember About Program Delivery Enter the number of people at your nutrition presentation in the Q Send in your demographics if your program is located within the City of San Diego Have your Home Delivery drivers do their quarterly client assessments - and have them handy for site visits Check Home Delivered frozen food during prolonged periods of handling to prevent defrosting Call your contract administrator if your nutrition program experiences changes Let s highlight your programs and share your successes! Send photos of meal presentations and activities for the Nutrition Connection and the San Diego Senior Nutrition website. Submit them to Bonita.Maglidt@sdcounty.ca.gov