Inaugural award set to showcase creativity in shaping texture modified food

One of the new initiatives to be showcased at t­his year’s IHHC National Conference – now rescheduled to November – will be the inaugural Flavour Creations Texture Modified Food Award. Developed by Brisbane-based Flavour Creations in conjunction with the IHHC, the Award will be presented alongside the 2022 IHHC National Awards for Excellence at the conference dinner.

The Texture Modified Food Award has been created to recognise quality, excellence and innovation in texture modified meal development and will be awarded to the best IDDSI Level 4 Pureed dish produced. To get the inside story of how the award came about, we spoke to Flavour Creations’ CEO Bernadette Eriksen and Senior Brand Manager Nadia Campagnolo.

“It goes back to 2016 when we were working with HammondCare and they wanted a product which would assist in shaping texture modified food,” Bernadette recalls. “We prefer to say ‘shaping’ rather than ‘moulding’ food as experience shows that some patients and residents might prefer their food to be in a particular shape. The idea is to make the food as appealing as possible to the person consuming it – for 90 per cent of clients, that might be to present it in identifiable shape and colour to a steak, carrot, peas and potatoes. Others, such as people with dementia, might prefer everything round or square. The important thing is for the food to look the way they want it to look to elevate the dining experience.”

Hence the development of Flavour Creations’ Shape It Instant Powder which has proven highly successful. “Clients using it have reported an increase in hydration and nutritional intake among their patients and residents,” Bernadette reports. “Gold Coast University Hospital was one of the first to adopt the concept and they’ve reaped excellent results.”

Recognising the importance of boosting awareness of the benefits of shaping texture modified food, Bernadette approached the IHHC with the idea of establishing an annual award. “As longtime supporters of the IHHC, we thought they were the perfect choice to run this award – they’re food focused, they reach the right demographic and they have a passion to promote food quality within health and aged care – not just nutritional values but how it looks, tastes and smells.

“We were very pleased when the Board approved the idea and the entries we received have been amazing – clearly there’s some very creative chefs out there working in this area.”

Entrants were required to prepare an original IDDSI Level 4 Pureed Dish and collaborate with a Speech Pathologist and Accredited Practising Dietitian to obtain specialist approvals for texture and nutrition respectively; take a photograph showcasing its appetite appeal and plating, and submit this together with a recipe, nutritional table, suitability for dietary needs, cook time and number of serves. Entries were assessed by a panel of six judges including two from Flavour Creations, a residential aged care home (RACH) dietitian, a RACH speech pathologist and representatives from the IHHC Conference Committee and National Board. Judging criteria embraced accuracy, certification to IDDSI Level 4 Pureed, presentation, creativity/originality and nutrition.

The first prize winner receives $750 in cash, an award plaque, two tickets to the IHHC Gala Dinner at this year’s conference, annual membership to the IHHC and a Shape It Pack including moulds, Shaped recipe book and two 200g cans of Shape It. They will also be invited to judge at the 2023 award. The runner up receives $250 in cash along with the award plaque and additional prizes as listed above.

The winner and runner-up were originally scheduled to be announced last month, but with the rescheduling of the Conference to November the decision was made to hold off the announcement so the award could be presented at the Conference Gala Dinner.

“We want to ensure people are really excited and engaged about the award – we will have our chef make up the winning recipes and they will be showcased at the dinner,” Bernadette explains.

“This award gives us a voice to advocate for the importance of texture modified food and improved presentation quality,” Nadia Campagnolo adds. “We know there are many places whose residents and patients can benefit from this kind of innovation and it’s up to providers and suppliers to help raise the bar in health and aged care.”

“We haven’t been able to find an industry award for texture modified food anywhere else in the world,” Bernadette says, “so we believe this may be a world first.” 

With demand for texture modified food continuing to grow, the award is set to play an important role in raising awareness of how to cost-effectively produce shaped meals.

More information about Shape-It is available at www.flavourcreations.com.au or by contacting sales@FlavourCreations.com.au on Ph 07 3373 3000.