food on wheels

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Meals on wheels: delivery of a meal

Under meals on wheels means the regular supply ready-prepared meals up to the front door or even in the home of the customer. Meals on wheels is offered by social institutions, charities , aid organizations and private companies and is primarily tailored to the needs of older people or people in need who can no longer or do not want to prepare their meals independently.

Meals on wheels are often referred to by the providers as “meal service”, “menu service”, “food delivery service” or simply “ catering ”, partly to avoid the association with “old people eating”. The transitions to the offers of gastronomy and conventional delivery services are fluid.

service

In addition to normal main meals for different flavors, the menu usually also includes special foods such as vegetarian , low-salt, easily digestible or lactose-free meals, diabetic foods or pureed foods for customers with swallowing difficulties . Desserts, cakes, supper and drinks often complete the offer. The dishes are usually selected in advance from a schedule and delivered warm every day within an agreed time frame, often also on weekends and public holidays. In most cases, you can even cancel or reorder at short notice. The delivery takes place in reusable thermal containers, either in aluminum or plastic bowls or on porcelain dishes. Alternatively, many suppliers have frozen food in their range that is ordered for several days and warmed at home.

Depending on the menu request, provider and service, prices between EUR 2.35 and EUR 10 per main meal are common (2007). Those in need can apply for grants in accordance with Section 79 of the SGB ​​XII .

history

The idea for meals on wheels originated in England in the 1940s . In December 1943, the women of the British welfare organization WVS ( Women's Voluntary Service , today Royal Voluntary Service ) in Welwyn Garden City delivered the first meals to the elderly and in need of care.

In the United States , the Older Americans Act, passed on July 14, 1965 by President Lyndon B. Johnson and the 89th Congress of the United States , gave rise to numerous charities. After the creation of this federal law, numerous charities were set up to take up this type of service. In 1974 the non-profit organization (NPO) Meals on Wheels Association of America, formerly Meals On Wheels Association of America , was founded. It is currently the oldest and largest organization serving food on wheels at national level. She is based in Arlington , Virginia and is led by Ellie Hollander as CEO .

In the 1960s, food came to Germany on wheels. In July 1961, the neighborhood house on Berlin's Urbanstrasse provided 30 Kreuzberg pensioners with hot meals for the first time. At that time, a meal cost 20 pfennigs.

The idea of ​​providing as many people in need as possible with a warm meal as quickly as possible - and therefore on four wheels - was developed by Magdalene Schwietzke, chairwoman of the Krefeld Verein für Haus- und Krankenpflege eV, during a board meeting on February 8, 1961. Inspired by For the social service that was already active in England, she developed the plan to ensure “the daily care of old and sick people” (so it can be read in the protocol) in Krefeld. Because the problem of "keeping food warm" during transport was not under control, the service did not start until October 1, 1961. In a Ford Taunus 17M P2, the first 48 menus were roast pork with noodles, plus starchy soup and jello Vanilla toasted to old, sick and needy people in Krefeld. The last few meters to the customer, the " Henkelmann " was transported in a wicker basket, warmly wrapped in a chintz blanket.

In 1971 Ruth Martin, head of the meal service of the Berlin DRK, succeeded in introducing a new type of catering for the elderly together with the entrepreneur Karl Düsterberg . In order to avoid the problems with delivery in thermal containers, he offered frozen deliveries in styrofoam containers with dry ice. The portions that could be selected from a menu plan then only needed to be warmed up. This type of delivery, which became known as the “rolling lunch table” of the DRK, also solved the supply problem on weekends and public holidays.

In 2010, the German Nutrition Society (DGE) worked with the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection in one of the projects of the IN FORM initiative to develop the “Quality Standard for Meals on Wheels”. The aim of the project was "to improve or maintain the nutritional quality of the meals from the choice of food to the food production to delivery and service". Since then u. a. a corresponding certification for manufacturers and distributors.

Today food on wheels is available everywhere in Germany.

Market overview (Germany)

In 2004 around 2000 providers shared the market for meals on wheels, including around 700 private companies and 1300 providers with social support, e.g. B. Welfare associations and aid organizations such as Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund Deutschland , Arbeiterwohlfahrt , Caritas , Malteser Hilfsdienst , German Red Cross , Paritätischer Wohlfahrtsverband etc., which served a total of 320,000 people on the move.

Most providers of meals on wheels do not cook themselves, but deliver pre-bought meals. According to a television report from 2003, four out of five meals are not freshly cooked. This is not necessarily a disadvantage: On the one hand, such a larger menu selection is available to the customer at short notice, and on the other hand, frozen meals must only be "regenerated" (heated and possibly cooked to the end) shortly before delivery. This means that fewer vitamins are lost than if the food was kept warm for hours.

The manufacturers of these menus are primarily three large supraregional providers who dominate the German market: The Rheiner company apetito , which describes itself as the market leader and counts almost all of the major charities and aid organizations among its customers, the Hofmann menu manufactory from Boxberg (Baden) and the Menuservice Meyer GmbH ( Meyer Menu ) based in Bielefeld . Apetito and Hofmann deliver frozen meals, Meyer cooks in regional large kitchens and delivers with their own vehicles or through franchisees . In addition, party services and large kitchens, e.g. B. from hospitals and old people's homes, which improve their occupancy rate by eating on wheels.

Test results

In 2011, the Stiftung Warentest tested six providers in Berlin and criticized the high calorific value and too much fat and salt in the food delivered. In contrast, the microbiological quality of the meals tested was harmless. Overall, only two providers received the quality rating “good”. The sensory assessment, which includes taste and appearance, was not “good” for any of the providers. The main differences were in the menu selection and the ordering and delivery service.

Back in 2004, after a test in Hamburg and Potsdam, the Stiftung Warentest complained about too much fat, salt and too few carbohydrates. At that time, only one provider out of seven received the test grade "Good".

In 2013, Westdeutscher Rundfunk's program Servicezeit compared the offers of the providers apetito , Hofmann Menümanufaktur and Sauels Fresh Menu , which have a high market share in North Rhine-Westphalia . As a result of the comparison focused on taste and quality, Hofmann came off as the best provider; Sauels and apetito took second and third place.

Statistics and Taxes

Meals on Wheels has been included in the shopping cart for the consumer price index of the Federal Statistical Office since 2000 .

The taxation of meals on wheels depends on the service. According to a ruling by the Federal Fiscal Court, the full VAT rate applies (since January 1, 2007: 19%) if the service nature outweighs the pure delivery, e.g. B. by providing reusable dishes and delivery to the apartment, otherwise the reduced rate of 7% applies, unless the provider (like many non-profit organizations) is completely exempt from sales tax anyway.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Our history. Royal Voluntary Service, accessed November 12, 2014 .
  2. ^ The origins of WVS Meals on Wheels. (PDF; 24 KB) Royal Voluntary Service, June 17, 2013, accessed on November 6, 2014 .
  3. ↑ a b c d Stiftung Warentest: Test Essen auf Wheels 2004 test.de, May 21, 2004 and test 5/2004, p. 91ff.
  4. ↑ 50 years of food on wheels. (No longer available online.) Krefelder Verein für Haus- & Krankenpflege eV, archived from the original on February 18, 2015 ; Retrieved November 8, 2014 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / pflegedienst-krefeld.de
  5. ↑ 40 years of cooperation with DRK Berlin celebrated. (PDF; 196 KB) apetito , March 9, 2011, accessed on November 8, 2014 (press release).
  6. ↑ apetito company founder Karl Düsterberg has passed away. apetito , July 15, 2014, accessed November 8, 2014 (press release).
  7. ↑ Anniversary book - 50 years of apetito. (PDF; 12.9 MB) apetito , May 13, 2008, accessed on November 8, 2014 (page 44 in PDF).
  8. ↑ Quality standard for meals on wheels. (PDF; 3.26 MB) 1st edition 2010. (No longer available online.) In: IN FORM . German Nutrition Society , November 2, 2010, archived from the original on November 8, 2014 ; Retrieved November 8, 2014 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.in-form.de
  9. ↑ Meals on Wheels. In: service time. Westdeutscher Rundfunk, September 24, 2003 ( Memento from April 26, 2004 in the Internet Archive )
  10. ↑ Annual report of the apetito group 2006, p. 31
  11. ↑ FAQ on the apetito website , accessed on May 27, 2011
  12. ↑ Meals on wheels - indispensable for many seniors ( Memento of the original from December 24, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. VIS - Bavarian Consumer Information System of the Bavarian State Ministry for the Environment, Health and Consumer Protection, accessed on February 29, 2012  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.vis.bayern.de
  13. ↑ Stiftung Warentest: Test Essen auf Wheels 2011 test.de, 22 September 2011 and test 10/2011, p. 22ff.
  14. ↑ Food on Wheels: A comparison of providers. Apetito, Hofmann or Sauels: where does it taste best? In: service time . Westdeutscher Rundfunk , November 19, 2013, archived from the original on August 26, 2014 ; accessed on November 6, 2014 .
  15. ↑ Shopping basket and weighting scheme, section "Changes in shopping basket 2000". Federal Office of Statistics. ( Memento from January 9, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
  16. ↑ Bundesfinanzhof , judgment of August 10, 2006 - file number VR 55/04