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Whitsons Culinary Group, a provider of food services to private...Read More
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There are many vitamins and minerals that are essential to living a healthy life. Calcium is one min
Katherine Ancona @ Monday, 12 June 2017 -
Happy National Dairy Month from Whitsons Culinary Group. National Dairy Month is an annual tradition
Fooditude @ Monday, 05 June 2017 -
Summer is just around the corner and that means that tomatoes are now in season! There are hundreds
Katherine Ancona @ Tuesday, 30 May 2017
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Whitsons Culinary Group, a provider of food services to private and public schools, corporate dining, healthcare, throughout the Northeast, today announced a renewed commitment to its sustainable supplier sourcing and animal welfare initiatives in all of its contract managed accounts. This is part of Whitsons’ new Simply Rooted™ food philosophy and sustainability platform which is based on delivering wholesome, all-natural, and affordable meals to everyone’s table.
“We are strongly committed to the highest quality, safest purchasing practices, which include sustainable sourcing initiatives that will improve animals’ lives, as well as strict compliance standards for all our vendors. We have been working with our supply chain in ...Read More
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Whitsons Culinary Group, a provider of food services to private and public schools, corporate dining, healthcare, throughout the Northeast, today announced a renewed commitment to providing wholesome and nutritionally balanced meals with all-natural, organic, and non-GMO ingredients to all school districts that they serve.
“Whitsons already has a proven record of offering wholesome foods that taste great and that students enjoy,” said Douglas Whitcomb, Chief Product Officer for Whitsons Culinary Group. Current menus feature items made from ingredients and recipes that reflect the needs of local customers, regional taste preferences, fresh food seasonality and the latest culinary trends. “But today, we’re taking our food philosophy to a new level.”...Read More
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Whitsons Culinary Group, a provider of food services to private and public schools, corporate dining, and healthcare throughout the Northeast, today announced perfect scores in the USDA State Agency Administrative Review, a rule that was updated by the USDA in July 2016 as a way to unify the monitoring of federally funded school meal programs. Whitsons is pleased to announce that they have had a 100% success rate with State Administrative Reviews this school year.
“Whitson’s is committed to staying on top of the complex and ever-evolving USDA Child Nutrition Programs, inclusive of the National School Lunch and Breakfast Program, and helping our clients understand and implement them,” said Katherine Barfuss, RD, CDN, and Director of Nutrition Services at Whitsons Culinary Group. “The vast number of training programs and resources we offer help school districts, not only comply, but excel with program requirements. We operate foodservice programs with the utmost...Read More
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Whitsons Culinary Group, a provider of fresh nutrition services for public schools throughout the Northeast, is committed to serving wholesome foods that taste great. Whitsons’ culinary team is focused on preparing meals using ingredients that are locally sourced, minimally processed, from all natural, and organic or non-GMO, whenever available, all while providing students with culinary education opportunities to promote healthy eating habits.
“Our back to basics approach to school nutrition has enabled us to get to the heart of what matters to our student customers when it comes to food.” said Richard Sandmann, Executive Chef New England Region and Culinary Innovation Specialist at Whitsons School Nutrition, “Serving wholesome great tasting food, and teaching students about food and nutrition, sets the stage for them to enjoy more enriching educational experiences around the foods they eat.”
The company’s latest food and nutrition education programs...Read More
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Elizabeth NJ, April 6th, 2017- Whitsons Culinary Group was awarded the Employment in Community Award by Community Access Unlimited (CAU), a statewide nonprofit providing support programs and services to adults with disabilities as well as youth served under the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to enable them to live independently in the community, providing supports in areas including housing, vocational skills and life-skills training, education, advocacy and recreation.
Team member and Food Service Director from the Irvington School District, Krystal Tanner, accepted the award on behalf of Whitsons at CAU’s 2017 Awards Night Celebration.
Whitsons employs three CAU members that are food service workers at Irvington High School that help to feed 700 students daily by preparing food, serving meals, cleaning and handling other responsibilities.
"We are very pleased with the team members," said Krystal, who noted the CAU members are extremely reliable and...Read More1121
April 12th, 2017, Whitsons Culinary Group held its first Culinary Competition where three chefs competed "Iron Chef" style, for the title of FLAVES Champion 2017, Chef Sean Arnold from York Suburban school district, Chef Joseph Stango from Fairfield and Newtown school districts and Chef Matt Lacombe from Lexington school district. See how the chefs faced off in a timed culinary competition!
Meet our Bombay Fusion Chefs
Chef Sean Arnold - York
Chef Sean Arnold is our Chef for York Suburban School District. Chef Sean is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and Green Mountain College with a Master of Science in Sustainable Food Systems, he is a forward-thinking and multi-talented food service leader with more than 15 years of experience driving teams to success while promoting sustainable and environmentally-conscious initiatives.
Chef Sean first began his culinary journey while still a student at Elon University. Once graduated, he...Read More1443
Local Food Sourcing and Nutrition Education Engage Children in Healthy Eating
Islandia, NY, April 4, 2017 - Whitsons Culinary Group, a provider of fresh nutrition services for public schools throughout the Northeast, strongly supports the Farm-to-School movement and has implemented programs to incorporate local produce in school meals.
“Whitsons is committed to the Farm-to-School movement and serving wholesome, high-quality meals prepared with fresh, locally sourced ingredients,” said Kelly Friend, Chief Operating Officer of Whitsons “We are also equally excited about our education programs that present nutritious food in fun and engaging ways and encourage students to live healthy lifestyles.”
The company’s latest Farm-to-School initiatives include:
A Commitment to Local Agriculture
Sourcing food from local vendors and farmers has helped Whitsons remove ingredients like trans-fats, high fructose corn syrup and artificial colors and flavors from its food and has...Read More
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New facility will bring jobs and fresh, locally made meals, featuring natural and organic menu options for the greater Boston area
Islandia, NY, March 13, 2017 - Whitsons Culinary Group, a provider of fresh nutrition services for public schools throughout Massachusetts, is scheduled to open a state-of-the-art, USDA-approved culinary production facility in Boston, in April 2017. The local Boston Culinary Center will be located at 40 New Market Square, the former home of Katsiroubas Produce, allowing Whitsons to provide fresh meals that are locally made and locally sourced to the Greater Boston area. The new culinary center will also bring approximately 75 full time jobs to Boston.
On a daily basis, chefs at the Boston culinary center will prepare meals using wholesome, natural, and organic ingredients, including many items that are sourced from local food vendors and farmers. Menu items will consist of hand crafted hot entrees, sandwiches, salads, fruits and vegetables, whole...Read More
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Happy National Wear Red Day from Whitsons Culinary Group! This month, Whitsons has partnered with the American Heart Association to help raise awareness of heart disease and give support. Employees at Whitsons’ corporate office in Islandia, New York have raised over $500 which will go towards heart disease research, community education, and other efforts to reduce the amount of heart related deaths in the US.
After a week of heart healthy lunches prepared by corporate chefs, Peter Johnson, Sean Bosch, Richard Fraser, and Charles Bishop, Whitsons’ Nutrition team held a Healthy Heart Brunch. During the brunch, Registered Dietitians, Katherine Barfuss, Laura Binder-Hines, and Katherine Ancona gave an informative presentation on Heart Healthy Grocery Shopping.
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Whitsons Culinary Group is committed to supporting Farm-to-School programs and local agriculture.
January 26, 2017 – York, PA – York Suburban Middle School hosted an award event to honor Farm-to-School grant receivers including Whitsons’ Food Service Director, Helen Heidler. York Suburban School District was among 30 awardees receiving grants of up to $1,000 to implement farm-to-school activities, such as student samplings of local produce, farm school trips, school garden activities and efforts to incorporate local produce in school meals. The funding is provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s (PDE) Division of Food and Nutrition.
Representatives from the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) and Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) visited York Suburban Middle School to announce the Farm-to-School grant winners. During the event, attendees and students sampled produce from several local farms in Pennsylvania,...Read More1402
The article reads:
Allan M. Dorman Congratulates Whitsons Culinary Group for CNA’s Risk Control Leadership in Safety Award
Recently, Allan M. Dorman, Mayor, Village of Islandia, hosted a special awards ceremony in which CNA, a provider of commercial property and casualty insurance, presented its Risk Control Leadership in Safety Award to Whitsons Culinary Group, a provider of school, residential, healthcare, and emergency dining services and prepared meals with the production facility in Islandia.
Whitsons was honored by CNA for taking a proactive approach to a safer work environment by educating its employees about common risks in the industry, identifying problems in advance and taking the necessary steps to prevent an accident or business disruption from occurring. Mayor Dorman congratulated Whitsons for receiving the award and thanked the company for its commitment to Suffolk County and keeping jobs in Islandia.
(PC: Bob Giglione...Read More1181
It’s delivery day and the Whitsons Chef’s were happy to help load a truck full of presents to be delivered to SCO Family of Services. Chef Andrew Whitcomb was all smiles along with Chef Tony Distefano and Chef Jacek Dub while carrying and packing all 122 presents for delivery.
Our amazing team members in Islandia, New York donated the 122 gifts for SCO Family of Services and the young mothers and their children at Bethany Houses.
Bethany is a transitional living program for teenage mothers who are in foster care, along with their children. While living in the Bethany residences, young mothers finish school and acquire skills that will allow them to become self-sufficient young women who can care for their children. Pictured in the group photo are a few team members that donated gifts.
From left to right: front row: Midari Papa, Beth Bunster, and Modesta Jackson. Back row: Corinne Kevorkian, Pamela Neff, Karen Dittrich, Katherine Ancona, Fred...Read More1591
A group of Wellesley Middle School students have been growing organic vegetation hydroponically in the greenhouse at their school.
Whitsons' Food Service Director for Wellesley schools, Matt Delaney is featured in the video production by Wellesley Public Media and give details about their greenhouse project and explains how produce such as basil and spinach is used in school lunches.
Click here to see video.
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Whitsons Culinary Group was awarded the Employment in Community Award by Community Access Unlimited (CAU), a statewide nonprofit providing support programs and services to adults with disabilities as well as youth served under the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to enable them to live independently in the community, providing supports in areas including housing, vocational skills and life-skills training, education, advocacy and recreation.
Team member and Food Service Director from the Irvington School District, Krystal Tanner, accepted the award on behalf of Whitsons at CAU’s 2017 Awards Night Celebration.
Whitsons employs three CAU members that are food service workers at Irvington High School that help to feed 700 students daily by preparing food, serving meals, cleaning and handling other responsibilities.
See video of the event here.
"We are very pleased with the team members," said Krystal, who noted the CAU members are extremely reliable and very...Read More
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Managers and team members from Oxford, Hamden, and Fairfield, Connecticut school districts as well as Whitsons’ traveling Chef, Richard Sandmann participated in the New Haven Walk Against Hunger Event by the Connecticut Food Bank at Lighthouse Point Park in New Haven this past on Sunday.
The Connecticut Food Bank provides nutritious foods to those in need in the Connecticut area. The Walk Against Hunger brings attention to the challenges of those in need and helps to raise funds to put more food on plates. “More than 650 local food assistance programs rely on the Connecticut Food Bank as a resource for nutritious food to serve their community. Through this network, the Connecticut Food Bank distributes enough food across our stat to make 50,000 meals a day.” (www.ctfoodbank.org)
We thank all of our team members that showed their support and participated in the Walk Against Hunger event for the Connecticut Food Bank and Oxford School District Food Service Director,...Read More422
This year the Whitsons team at Wellesley, partnered with Bates Elementary School, Green Schools Wellesley and the EPA to enter into the EPA food recovery challenge.
The collective efforts created a recycle station that students can use to drain liquids from containers and then recycle them, stacking stations for sorting and stacking recyclable trays, bowls, plastic bottles and milk cartons and any usable leftovers for "share stations".
These recycle stations are now operational at 3 of the 7 elementary schools in Wellesley School District. Both the EPA and the state of Massachusetts awarded Bates Elementary School for these efforts in an official citation. Food Service Director, Matt Delaney was awarded the Community Hero award from Project Green Schools for the recycling, food recovery, and for district wide waste reduction efforts in Wellesley. “I am happy to be a part of the effort here at Wellesley. I have been focused on helping to implement...Read More300
It was a great day for a School Day at the New Britain Bees Stadium! Whitsons’ Resident District Manager for New Britain Public Schools, Jeffrey Taddeo threw out the first pitch along with New Britain Superintendant, Nancy Sarra.
The game attendance was a record high for the New Britain Bees with a total of 6,501 delighted spectators. Nutrition Safaris’, Luke the Lion, aka Food Service Director for New Britain, Mike Koch, participated in game activities throughout the day along with Sting the Bee, the New Britain Bees mascot.
Whitsons presented a check for $5,000 to the New Britain Bees to have New Britain School Day at their stadium which helped bring 4,902 New Britain students from grades 3-12 out to enjoy a fun day of baseball complete with lunch.
“This is one of the most rewarding events that we do annually. The community comes together and the students have the opportunity to come to the game and enjoy a day of fun,” said Resident District Manager,...Read More380
Whitsons’ Nutrition Director and Registered Dietitian, Katherine Barfuss is interviewed on this week’s episode of K12Foodies, a nutrition focused podcast that features guests that share their ideas, resources, and successes for K12- child nutrition.
Katherine has been instrumental in the creation and coordination of several nutrition education programs, including Whitsons’ “Ask the Rd” program. “Ask the Rd” is a free services in which questions about nutrition are answered by on the Whitsons Registered Dietitians. On this week’s episode Katherine will answer some of the most frequent “Ask the Rd” questions she’s received.
Listen now, here: http://ow.ly/8WMI30aaeynRead More627
This week, Whitsons received a special thanks from the Executive Director for the Connecticut Chapter of the House of Heroes, Dennis Buden, for our donation and contribution of 350 “Heart” cookies for their recent Hearts & Heroes 2017 fundraiser event.
House of Heroes Connecticut is a nonprofit organization serving our nation’s military and public safety veterans (and their spouses) who are disabled, living on a fixed income, or facing other physical/financial challenges. Volunteers perform minor repairs and make improvements to the homes of veterans and their spouses-at no cost to the veteran-through the generosity of individuals, civic organizations, and corporations.
“We are honored to be working with such a respectable organization as the House of Heroes,” said Jeffrey Taddeo, Whitsons’ Resident District Manager for New Britain. “Veterans make many sacrifices for our country, to help them in any way is effortless.”
The letter...Read More585
Whitsons' School Nutrition program is featured in this month's edition of the Hopkinton Independent, a local newspaper in Hopkinton, MA. Read more about it here and see the article below.
Healthy Options for Hopkinton Students
by Abigail Richardson
Since 2010 Michelle Obama has campaigned to improve the state of school lunches offered in public schools. The 2010 Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFKA) set new nutrition standards for school meals to help ensure ‘every American child had access to the nutrition they need to grow into healthy adults’. One of the goals was to reduce health risks for America’s children by helping schools across the country produce balanced meals so children had access to healthy foods during the school day. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) based the new school meal standards on independent, expert recommendations from the Institute of Medicine.
In Britain school cafeterias went under the scrutiny of celebratory chef Jamie...Read More522
York Suburban school district held a “Welcome to Spring” Vegetable competition today. The competition was fierce among Whitsons’ team members from all schools. (Click on image to see video.)
Team members from the High School created a rock band, the middle school a bunny garden complete with a Whitsons wheelbarrow. Indian Rock Elementary also created a garden and it was filled cauliflower sheep grazing on shredded green coconut.
East York Elementary got creative with the school mascot, a dragon named “Spike” and a FOODITUDE vegetable train. Yorkshire Elementary created a beautiful vegetable garden and Valley View Elementary had a colorful vegetable train rolling along a track. The creativity was amazing!
Whitsons’ Chefs, John Koutras and Sean Arnold judged the competition and what a difficult task it was since team members from all the schools presented such great work.
The winning team and school was announced this afternoon...Read More484
On January 26, 2017, York Suburban Middle School hosted an award event to honor Farm-to-School grant receivers including Whitsons’ Food Service Director, Helen Heidler. York Suburban School District was among 30 awardees receiving grants of up to $1,000 to implement farm-to-school activities, such as student samplings of local produce, farm school trips, school garden activities and efforts to incorporate local produce in school meals. The funding is provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s (PDE) Division of Food and Nutrition.
Representatives from the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) and Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) visited York Suburban Middle School to announce the Farm-to-School grant winners. During the event, attendees and students sampled produce from several local farms in Pennsylvania, including Flinchbaugh’s Orchard, Millers Plant Farm, and Brogue Hydroponics. “I am super excited to have received this farm-to-school...Read More741
Chef Ryan Hurley and the team at Attleboro High School made sushi for students for their Guest Chef Day. With the help of Chef Craig Chin and the team at Attleboro, 150 rolls of sushi were made.
See a How to video of Chef Hurley making a California Roll and pictures from the event here.Read More721
Students of CREC PSA enjoyed Chef Sandmanns’ Burger Bar! Students dined on burgers with assorted topping choices such as Cheese, Turkey Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato, Fresh Guacamole, Jalapeños, Pickles, Sautéed Onions, Peppers, Mushrooms, and even Fresh Fried Eggs!
All burgers were served with oven crinkled fries, a fresh fruit selection and a milk! Students loved their Burger Bar and gave the team top points on flavor.
Special thanks to Bill Devoe and his team at CREC, Anne, Sue and Marlene and Chef Sandmann for making another tasty lunch meal for students.
Click here to see video!Read More883
On June 11th 2013, Sharlene Bejarano, our Chef Manager at Good Shepherd Services (GSS), was recognized with the Good Shepherd Services’ Sanctuary Support Award for her “on-going support with staff and participants in practicing the Sanctuary commitments and values”.
A 16+ year dedicated Whitsons veteran, Sharlene goes above and beyond her role as chef manager, connecting and building positive relationships with the youth GSS serves. Furthermore, Sharlene played a major role when Hurricane Sandy hit New York, organizing and supporting staff, while ensuring the continuation of excellent services at all Good Shepherd locations.
Congratulations to Sharlene for this very well deserved award! Read More5455
In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, it was very difficult for our team members in the Tristate area to commute to and from work. However, these difficulties did not prevent them from providing the best service possible to our clients.
At Carnegie East House, this was not the exception! Our team worked around the clock to ensure the safety and well-being of their residents — some staying overnight/multiple nights, while others travelling over two hours by cab to get to work. According to Food Service Director Jolie Ospina, “I can’t tell you what a great group of people I have working here with me. I am so proud. Their dedication and hard work goes beyond words.”
To thank the Whitsons team at Carnegie for their efforts, residents gave our team a huge round of applause at a recent Resident Council Meeting.Read More6097
During emergency disasters, our chefs and managers ensure we continue assisting the dining needs of our customers during these stressful times. The residents at SCO Sea Cliff experienced the dedication of our team during Hurricane Sandy.
Chef Fred Hakimi went the extra mile to put the needs of his residents above his own. Both during and after the storm, Chef Hakimi took special care to ensure all food and supplies were continuously available and in stock for his residents. He stayed overnight, delivered hot food to his residents (by foot) and worked tirelessly to provide quality care.
According to our client at SCO, “Fred is such an integral part of our team; he is the one who provides us with the nourishment to sustain our residents and staff in challenging times such as these. It is an absolute pleasure working with Fred. His professionalism, compassion and commitment are matched by no other.”Read More6402
On July 31st, the residents of Carnegie East House enjoyed a wonderful play. This play, called “Ladies’ Night”, was created by Scott Gordon, Carnegie’s Activities Director, who also performed all the music for the play. The performers were all very acclaimed by the residents and the family members that attended this event.
Carnegie residents and visitors also enjoyed a very special tea time after the show, consisting on delicious treats and refreshments, offered by the Whitsons team. According to Jolie Ospina, Food Service Director at Carnegie East, “some family members attended and the food was highly complimented”. Read More5702
We always strive to live our mission of enhancing life one meal at a time through our words, our services and our actions each and every day. Receiving “Thank You” letters recognizing these efforts is more than we can ever ask:
Our client at SCO Sea Cliff thanks Chef Fred Hakimi for being a valuable member of their family: “June is usually a very busy month with the end of the school year. These last three weeks have been especially demanding. Last week alone we had auditors, a field day and training at our residential training center — all on the same day — and each group requested your lunch. I think you prepared over 200 sandwiches, all before noon. We are fortunate to have such a dedicated, committed and caring “King of our Kitchen.” You are the most important part of our family, supporting and providing food for the table to nourish and strengthen our youth and staff and enhancing our lives one meal at a time.”
A resident leaving Madonna Heights, thanks Chef Phil...Read More6155
During Hurricane Irene, several of the Carnegie East House food service team members stayed at the facility in order to continue assisting the dining needs of the Carnegie East residents during this stressful time. Valerie Barnett, Manuel Piedra, Jancis De la Cruz, Rushonn Jackson, Sol Lacerda, Alize Conde, Minnie Grant, Imani McDonald and Melissa Clemente maintained a positive outlook and calm demeanor throughout the storm and its aftermath, which was very comforting to the residents.
According to Yolanda Ospina, “The residents here are all very grateful for a job well done!!! I knew my team would come through. We are happy to have been of help in feeding all those people in an indirect way.”
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As part of the Good Shepherd Wellness Initiative, every Wednesday throughout February, students and staff at Good Shepherd Services (GSS) received cooking demos and seminars. Guest chefs Emanuel Montalvo, Sharlene Bejarano, Shanay Mason and Peter Bellisario took center stage at GSS’s cooking demos, while District Manager, Mark Kirn, led the nutritional seminars. All were aimed at increasing awareness of healthier food options and nutritional education.Read More5713
Always aiming to keep the menu fresh and exciting, this month the team at Estee Lauder introduced fair food favorites such as Potato Twirls on a Stick with different seasoning flavors - BBQ, Salt & Vinegar, Cheddar, Sour Cream & Onion, Salt and Garlic Pepper and Ketchup flavors.
The team used Yukon Gold Potatoes and Red Bliss Potatoes to make these fantastic creations. It was a fun treat for all!Read More3326
On June 19th, the annual Pink Ribbon Kickoff Luncheon took place at Estee Lauder’s JHL facility in Melville, New York. In this luncheon, they discussed the planning of future events, fundraisers, breast cancer research, etc.
The Whitsons Corporate Dining team at Estee Lauder catered the event, led by Chef Kirk Ingebretsen. The varied menu consisted of Roasted Salmon Lemon Dill Aioli, French Cut Chicken Breast with Demi Glaze, Gourmet Mac and Cheese with Butternut Squash and Mushrooms, and for dessert, Raspberry Chambord Cheese Cake.
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On January 17th, United Nations Federal Credit Union celebrated their annual Winter Gala. This year’s theme was “Enchantment under the Sea”. Guests were greeted in one room where they enjoyed delicious appetizers, and then “transported” by the elevator to an ocean-themed room where the banquet took place.
The event hosted more than 300 guests and Whitsons Corporate Dining prepared a very special menu for this occasion, which included a 3 flavors risotto station (duck and asparagus, seafood and wild mushroom), a sushi bar, a skewer station, a fresh seafood station and assorted salads.
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On Wednesday December 11th, Stryker hosted their annual Holiday Party. The Stryker Atrium was transformed to a holiday themed party seating over 480 people at once.
The delicious holiday menu featured: Mustard seed crusted prime rib with Dijon crème fraiche and roasted balsamic onions, spinach parmesan soufflé, rosemary & tarragon herbed salmon with Minnesota wild rice blend and grilled Asiago polenta, pomegranate roasted Cornish game hen with haricot verts with hazelnuts and lemony salt-roasted fingerling potatoes, gnocchi alla Romana with spinach, Holiday Tres Leches cake, German chocolate cake and apple crisp.
The cafeteria team at Stryker served around 1,650 employees through five sittings in the course of the day!
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The local foods initiative at Estee Lauder just turned hyper local! An indoor garden was installed in the cafeteria at the Estee Lauder Research Park facility. The garden will grow greens and herbs such as arugula, mesclun greens, bibb lettuce, and fresh herbs like basil and rosemary. These products will then be used to prepare delicious lunch meals.
It doesn’t get any more local than this!
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On June 28th, Estee Lauder 350 Main held a BBQ celebrating the launch of their new Fragrance Production Area. The BBQ featured fun carnival games, ice cream trucks and delicious food such as Caribbean lime jerk chicken, Black Angus burgers, balsamic fig marinated Portobello mushroom burgers and fresh salads using local greens and vegetables.
The BBQ served over 1200 people over a 24 hour period, so the Whitsons team worked all day and night to cover all three shifts at the plant in Melville, NY and please every single one of our Estee Lauder customers.
The event was a great success and our customers were more than thrilled!Read More5480
Reducing the solid waste produced in every day operations is a number one priority at Stryker. Styrofoam trays are made of polystyrene, a petroleum-based product which stays around for centuries, taking up lots of landfill space. Furthermore, solid waste adds a significant amount of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. For these reasons, last fall, Stryker made the switch to biodegradable clam shells made from bagasse and corn-based plastic. These trays can be composted (they biodegrade in 30-90 days) and turned into soil again, completing the biological cycle with virtually no waste! Read More5764
At Estee Lauder cafes, being green comes first! The cafeterias are committed to environmental conservation and strive to become “greener” operations every day. They have banned the use of Styrofoam trays; instead, they use a combination of reusable and paper trays. Recycled paper napkins are used instead of regular paper ones. Furthermore, they have recently replaced all of their cleaners with environmentally friendly ones. It is easy to be green at Estee Lauder! Read More6009
In an effort to continue their environmental initiatives, Stryker has recently unveiled their latest initiative: a High Volume Organic Waste Decomposition System, also known as “Audrey”, after the character from “The Little Shop of Horrors”. Audrey turns the organic waste produced in the cafeteria into non-potable water, which is then discharged into the sewage system and processed in a water treatment plant where the water is cleaned and returned to the environment. In the first three weeks of operation, Stryker has already converted over 4,500 lbs. of solid waste into water.
This is a major step in reducing Stryker’s environmental footprint since solid waste is one of the largest contributors to environmental degradation. According to George Kirby, Whitsons Food Service Director at Stryker, “Our goal, of course, is to maximize the environmental benefits of such a system. By cutting down on our solid waste hauling, we save money, preserve valuable landfill space, reduce truck...Read More8776
Wonderful things have been happening at our Estee Lauder locations!
Following Estee’s Holiday Party last month, our Estee locations (Main, Research Park and JHL) kept the festivities rolling by hosting a very special “Brunch Day” the next day, complete with specialty meals, which included savory bread pudding, an omelet station and a carving station with sliced Virginia ham.
Estee Research Park and JHL also held a Juice Tasting during the first week of December to introduce customers to a new line of all-natural beverages called Red Jack Orchard Juices. According to Assistant Manager Kathleen Cavallo of Estee Lauder Main, customers have been enjoying this new brand, which features flavors ranging from Fuji and Black Currant to Grape and Raspberry. Read More6507
In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, our team members were called to help distribute food to the victims in the locations affected by the storm.
When the call came, the entire team at UBM rose to the occasion and volunteered to serve the food in one of the Far Rockaway locations. According to Peter Bellisario, Food Service Manager at UBM, “We were touched to be able to help thousands of people looking for food and a little compassion, and I was touched that we were all doing this nice work together.” Read More6026
It is grilling season, and this August was no exception! Our customers at Estee Research Park and UNFCU enjoyed delicious homemade heart-healthy burgers.
Chef Jose Argueta from Estee Lauder Research Park prepared a made-from-scratch fresh turkey burger that was the star of the meal. UNFCU’s Chef Jose Calderone also served freshly prepared burgers, including a turkey spinach burger, and Executive Chef Andy Whitcomb’s rice burger. Sounds delicious! Read More6734
CAMBA and Whitsons Culinary Group have partnered to provide real-life experience to CAMBA’s Next Step Food Protection Certification Training by inviting Whitsons’ food service professionals to participate in the program’s Guest Speaker series.
This February, Jim Corrigan, Business Development Manager, shared his vast professional experience with the students and was able to give them a real-life perspective of the food services field, which helped the students understand how diverse the food services field is.
According to Sherrill Hampton, the Food Protection Trainer, it was Jim’s down-to-earth attitude that made it very easy for the students “to open up and engage in fruitful conversation and ask questions”. Jim’s professionalism commanded their attention and respect.Read More6106
When the Boston Public Schools went out to bid, the district was interested in finding an innovative new approach to its dining program. By selecting Whitsons as their new provider, our fresh, healthy and nutritious solution was exactly the change they were looking for. What is it about our Boston account that makes it so unique? The service is a blend of two of our strongest niches: school nutrition and prepared meals. Whitsons serves about 30,000 meals per day consisting of breakfast, lunch and snack to this school district. These meals are Individually Packaged Meals (IPMs), delivered from the USDA-approved, BRC-certified and continuously inspected Islandia Culinary Center to Boston Public Schools. The meals are paired with local fresh fruits, vegetables, milk and bread. They are then delivered to the schools daily.
The response to Whitsons school lunch program has been overwhelmingly positive and parents and students alike are happy with the change. They are enjoying the...Read More12076
The Sunday following Christmas, the Northeast was hit with a major snowstorm. Transportation systems were down, with buses suspended and limited train service, but that did not stop Whitsons team members from making sure meals were delivered to Prepared Meals clients as promised. Managers and team members alike came in the night before, and some stayed through the next night, to prepare in advance for what was predicted. Drivers started coming in as early as 2:30AM to begin digging out the trucks and some team members walked through several feet of snow to get to work. The biggest challenge was to get the drivers out and on the roads, through the treacherous conditions and into the unplowed areas of many clients. Read More7035
A month after Hurricane Sandy ravaged the Northeast, there are some communities that are still suffering the negative impacts of this natural disaster. Hurricane Sandy destroyed homes and disrupted lives in many areas of New Jersey and New York. Recovery is underway, but some of these residents are currently living in a precarious situation, in homes without power or heat. In these communities, the certainty of having access to a warm meal is a welcomed relief.
In partnership with the NYC Human Resources Administration, Whitsons is still operating three sites in Coney Island and the Rockaways. In these hard-hit areas, life is not back to normal yet, and thousands of neighbors are relying on city-sponsored food tents for the daily meals as the local food sources such as supermarkets were also damaged by the storm.
Below is a link to a video produced by NY News 1 channel featuring the role of the food distribution sites in the affected...Read More6544
When Hurricane Sandy hit the Northeast, Whitsons Emergency Dining was already busy preparing thousands of meals to be distributed in the areas affected by the storm. Through our partners, humanitarian organizations and local government, we have been providing nutritious meals to several affected areas immediately after the storm hit.
Whitsons partnered with the American Red Cross to provide over 330,000 meals, both hot and cold, to hard hit areas in New Jersey, the New York City boroughs of Staten Island, Queens and Brooklyn, and Nassau and Suffolk counties in Long Island. In New York City, New York City’s Human Resources Administration (HRA) engaged Whitsons to feed residents in Coney Island, Brooklyn and the Rockaways, Queens, serving thousands of hot and cold meals every day.
Recovery from this severe storm is still ongoing, but for anyone severely affected by this extreme event, the certainty of knowing where your next meal is coming from is an important step back...Read More8461
In the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, Whitsons partnered with the City School District of Albany to produce over 8000 emergency meals for local residents who lost power in their homes. The City School District of Albany provided access to its Arbor School for the distribution of emergency meals via the National American Red Cross (NARC).Read More5872
While most people living on the east coast were preparing for Hurricane Irene and staying inside, Delivered Meals Managers James Corrigan and Gregory Godfroy and their teams were preparing to deliver emergency meals to the Red Cross for people in need. With the help of many other team members, Jim and Greg were ready to take action and drive a truck with more than 5,000 meals 103 miles from Whitsons Elizabeth Culinary Center on Saturday August 27th. Notwithstanding the hazardous weather, Jim and Greg delivered the meals to the Red Cross, who then distributed the meals to shelters serving local residents in need. The Bronx and Islandia Culinary Centers also worked diligently in anticipation of the hurricane preparing the emergency meals. In the end, the team provided about 70,000 meals over two weeks. Those served really enjoyed the food and the boxed lunches Whitsons provided. All team members acted swiftly and were able to help many people during and in the aftermath of Hurricane...Read More6023
During an unexpected snowstorm at the end of October, Canton, Connecticut was hit hard with bad weather, turning the community center into a shelter for 8 days. The Whitsons food service team at Canton stepped in to prepare, cook and serve over a thousand hot meals at the shelter for the Canton citizens that lost power during the storm.
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