Abstract

Food procurement practices were assessed in 31 general hospital's dietetics in terms of the level of processing for purchased food. The level of processing before purchase by the institution was noted by a numerical value. a Food Processing Index (FPI). Labor productivity measured in terms of labor minutes per meal served averaged 12.59 minutes. Responsible persons for procurement practices were mostly dietitians, but effective purchasing methods as well as inventory control techniques were not fully systematized. Dietetic directors anticipate the large increase in the use of convenience foods in the future mainly due to the improved labor productivity, and also a highly increasing demand for completely pre-prepared food items (FPI 3). The grand mean of FPI scores for purchased foods in surveyed hospitals was 3.34, which indicates partially pre-prepared to completely pre-prepared food items. Significant negative correlation was found between the grand mean of FPI scores and the number of beds in a hospital.

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