The January slump is hard for everyone. Your inbox is full, your to-do list is long, and the remnants of Christmas snacks and those last few days of your advent calendar look tantalisingly tasty amid your drive to eat healthily.
Of course, there are lots of reasons why January is the time for new habits and healthy commitments – but that doesn’t make them any easier to adopt. Which is where you as an employer comes in.
When your employees and team members eat healthy, they feel healthy. And when they feel healthy, they are more productive, more motivated, and more likely to bring their positive new year energy into the office.
Here are five of the top ways to promote and support healthy eating in your workplace.
1. Provide healthy snacks – for free!
Everyone loves a freebie, and what better way to nurture great employee relationships than by giving them a free healthy snack at work? Not only does this counteract the age-old excuse that “eating healthy is expensive” – it also makes reaching for a nutritious snack just as easy (if not more so) than rustling around for a leftover Christmas chocolate or stale biscuit.
Feedr’s Pantry Refill offers a one-stop solution to all your employees’ favourite fruits, snacks, and weird 3 pm cravings – allowing you to find, order, and track fresh food deliveries right to your office door.
2. Encourage proper lunch breaks
Once upon a time, it was believed that working through lunch and staying late at the office were signs of a committed, loyal employee. Well, that time has passed!
Proper lunch breaks are now recognised as integral to employee motivation and can give team members a little time away from their desks to reset – allowing for a more productive afternoon. When lunch is eaten without distractions like a laptop, the team can focus more on what they’re eating and are likely to make healthier choices. Tying this in with a subsidised lunch through our Cloud Canteen service can also mean that your team doesn’t have to wait in long lines on the high street and can instead enjoy their lunch getting to know their coworkers better.
3. Order healthy catering options
There are countless times that we’ve arrived at work with all the good intentions of having a healthy day only to find ourselves drawn towards the boardroom from the smells of fresh pastries in the boardroom after a morning meeting.
This can all change with the help of Feedr’s Group Catering platform. Healthy catered options are just a click away – with salads, sandwiches, and snacks from all your favourite local vendors and suppliers. Whether you’re hosting a board meeting, celebrating Wimbledon or simply want to treat your team to some afternoon snacks, our service makes office catering easier to manage. We have a comprehensive and varied selection of suppliers to ensure all dietary requirements, preferences and themes are covered in a single order.
4. Provide health-focused employee benefits
Part of a healthy routine, whether in January or any other time of the year, is activity and exercise. More businesses than ever are adding lunchtime activities and subsidised lunch options to their employee benefits packages, highlighting the importance of movement as well as nutrition in a healthy routine.
Pairing this with a range of healthy snacks via the Feedr online pantry can help employees feel better and well looked after – contributing to increased employee loyalty and retention.
The benefits of increased workplace activity don’t end there. Classes and fitness opportunities often contribute to a heightened sense of community within your office or team as well. Encouraging employees to spend time together outside of their office setting can boost relationships, in turn optimising their ability to work cohesively as a team.
5. Use education to promote the importance of healthy eating
There’s a fine line between educating and preaching, and it’s important to get it right here. But when you tailor education around the benefits of healthy eating, with clear and easy access to healthy snacks for any and all employees, you will see that workplace healthy eating becomes a part of your office culture.
Is it your responsibility to promote healthy eating as an employer?
This is an interesting question because some may argue that employees should be free to eat as they desire. However, the benefits of healthy eating link healthy office food with increased productivity, better morale, and higher energy levels at work.
As an employer, how you choose to handle the subject of healthy eating can be subject to your team’s dynamic and your working style. However, for the most part, demonstrating an interest in healthy eating, and making healthy office food readily available and accessible, is a good way to maximise the output of your team and show them that you care about their wellbeing.
Not to mention, free food is always good food in the mind of an employee.
