Hospital Food

Hospital food is the food served and consumed in hospitals by both patients and staff. Hospital food includes the solid foods that make up meal options made available to patients able to eat food by mouth but does not include other forms of nutrition a patient may receive such as enteral nutrition (liquid food mixture direct into the stomach via a tube, known as “tube feeding”) or parenternal nutrition (liquid nutrition direct into a vein). Hospital food, prepared in a centralized kitchen by a professional catering staff, is typically made available in a hospital-wide cafeteria for visitors and staff, in addition to the meals delivered directly to patients in their beds. Hospital food is a $12 billion-a-year industry and has generated an increasing amount of ...