« Go Back Make refrigerators available for employees food storage

Why:

Increasing opportunities for employees to store food safely at work may help them make smart food choices and save money.  Simple modifications such as installing refrigerators in break rooms allow employees to bring perishable foods such as fruit, yogurt, low-fat milk, and brown bag lunches to work.  Creating space in cabinets and on countertops in break rooms or workrooms also makes it easier for employees to bring non-perishable foods to work.

How:

• Assess the worksite environment.  Determine where it is possible to increase food storage space.  Identify closet spaces that could house a refrigerator, if no break room exists.
• Arrange a meeting with management and the facilities department to discuss purchasing a refrigerator if needed.  Research opportunities to allocate funds from other projects or programs to cover the cost.
• Find protected spaces for employee food storage such as closets with old filing cabinets that could be cleaned and reorganized allowing for extra space.
• Encourage employees to store healthy food choices, such as fruit bowls, in visible locations with a great deal of foot traffic, like the top of a filing cabinet or in a corner cubicle.
• Initiate a healthy snack program and enlist the help of a wellness committee or motivated employees to administer the program.  Individual serving sizes of healthy food choices are non-perishable lunches and snacks such a peanut butter on whole grain bread, canned or dried fruit, and vegetable juice.
• Organize a lunch club where employees are assigned a specific day or week to make brown bag lunches for the group.
• Consider providing insulated lunch bags for employees to keep foods cold throughout the day.

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