As National Nutrition Week 2026 calls for healthier food environments, South African research highlights the role of hospital meals in patient nutrition and environmental sustainability.
South Africa (09 October 2026) – During National Nutrition Week (9–15 October), the Physicians Association for Nutrition (PAN) South Africa is drawing attention to a critical yet often overlooked aspect of healthcare: hospital food.
Under the theme “Creating Healthy Food Environments for Better Nutrition,” PAN South Africa emphasises that hospitals are vital spaces where patient care, nutrition, and environmental sustainability meet.
Hospital food is part of patient care
Recent studies in South African public hospitals reveal significant gaps between patient needs and the food actually provided. A study of 128 adult patients across three public hospitals in Cape Town found that served meals failed to meet individual energy and protein requirements. None of the facilities met official Department of Health ration targets.
A 2025 study across five public hospitals in the North West province showed that while protein levels were generally met or exceeded, none of the hospitals provided sufficient vitamin A or folate to meet Recommended Dietary Intakes (RDIs).
The two studies measure different aspects of hospital nutrition, but together they point to the importance of looking beyond the quantity of food served. Menu composition, portion sizes, food quality and food-service practices can all influence whether hospital meals adequately support patients’ nutritional needs.
“Food is not separate from patient care. For someone unwell, the nutritional value, quality, and timing of meals can all influence their ability to meet their nutritional needs during hospitalisation. At the same time, we need to consider what happens to food that is not eaten. Looking at both sides of the hospital food system allows us to support patient wellbeing while also reducing unnecessary waste,” states Dr Heinrich Volmink, Chief Operating Officer, PAN South Africa.
A healthy food environment also considers food waste
The environmental impact of hospital food starts long before a meal reaches a patient. Growing, transporting, preparing, and serving food all consume resources and generate greenhouse gas emissions. When meals go uneaten, those resources are wasted without delivering any nutritional benefit.
Reporting on South African healthcare facilities has highlighted food waste as part of the wider environmental footprint of hospitals, with uneaten or discarded food estimated to account for 20% to 30% of hospital waste. When this waste ends up in landfills, it decomposes and releases methane – a potent greenhouse gas that traps atmospheric heat and drives climate change, ultimately posing further risks to public health.
This creates a direct connection between patient nutrition and environmental sustainability: wasted food represents both a missed opportunity to nourish a patient and an avoidable burden on the planet.
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National Nutrition Week (9–15 October) calls for a whole-of-society approach, recognising that creating healthier food environments is a shared responsibility, not just an individual choice. Key messages target health professionals, employers, educators, retailers, and community leaders to support good nutrition across all stages of life.
For healthcare facilities, this means transforming the food environment for patients, staff, and visitors by ensuring the nutritional quality of meals, promoting sustainable food-service practices, considering the environmental impact of food procurement and supply, and reducing avoidable food waste.
To support this shift, the Physicians Association for Nutrition (PAN) offers concrete tools and networks. The Healthy Hospital Food (HHF) Project provides a practical framework for this work, supporting hospitals to improve nutrition through measures such as menu analysis, kitchen training, nutrition education and evaluation.
The Global Healthy Hospital Food Network brings together healthcare and food-service professionals interested in improving hospital food systems. The network provides opportunities to connect with peers, participate in quarterly discussions, and access tools, case studies, and insights that can support change within hospitals. The Network also provides an opportunity to connect the national conversation about healthier food environments with healthcare professionals and hospital decision-makers who can help translate these principles into practice.
PAN South Africa encourages healthcare professionals, hospital food-service teams, sustainability and procurement professionals, administrators and other decision-makers interested in improving hospital food to join the Global Healthy Hospital Food Network and contribute to the development of healthier, more sustainable hospital food systems.
For PAN South Africa, this forms part of its broader mission to advance nutrition in healthcare and advocate for health facilities to recognise food services as an integral part of delivering healthier, more sustainable care.
Sources: PAN South Africa
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