Category: Healthy Break Room Options

Can Orlando and Central Florida break rooms really contribute to employee morale? The answer is yes, they really can and especially during the winter months. A specific break room can either invite employees to visit it, stay awhile and engage in conversation or push employees to other areas for conversation and refreshments. 

Let’s look at three ways that your break room can have an impact.

The Space

There are many different factors to consider when designing a break room’s physical space. The first question to ask is how will the space be used. Understanding the purpose(s) before making design decisions allows the design to encompass current and future needs. Some employers offer open spaces with games such as Foosball or table tennis while others focus on multiple, smaller and unique seating arrangements.

The second questions to ask is what type of vibe or energy will the room have. For example, colors, textures, lighting, seating arrangements, layout, plants and organization all contribute to the experience an employee will have when walking into the room. Textures can come from a variety of materials including bricks or rocks, wood, pleather, metal, glass and plants. One caveat when it comes to color; colors have different meanings in different cultures and can impact Orlando and Central Florida individuals differently.

The Refreshments

Do the refreshments offered in your Orlando and Central Florida break room match the types of refreshments that are important to your current employees? If the answer is no, then it’s time to learn what would. Once those answers are clear, the next step is to consider quality coffee services, healthy snacks and beverages, and fresh food. The final menu should reflect both your organization’s needs and the refreshments your employees enjoy. 

The Activities

A break room can be used for more than grabbing a bite to eat or taking a break. The space can also become a central location where team building activities take place. At this time of year, gray skies are often accompanied by the winter blues. To combat these blah and sluggish feelings, host an event for your Orlando and Central Florida employees that creates feelings of team spirit and happiness.    

• Volunteer: Choose an organization that needs help creating packages or collecting items. For example, the break room could be a gathering point for a food drive for a local food bank or a space where employees can put together backpacks for foster children or care packages for overseas soldiers.  

• Host a Potluck: Encourage your employees to bring a dish to share. Themes for the event could include bring your favorite dish (from any time of year) or bring your favorite winter dish. It’s about choosing a theme that encourages employees to want to participate.

• Ugly Sweater Day: Invite your employees to wear the ugliest sweater they can find to work and host a competition in the break room to see whose is the ugliest. While this type of event often happens before the end of December, hosting an ugly sweater day during January or February is a fun way to boost everyone’s mood after the initial excitement of winter has worn away.

Are break rooms really this important? The simple answer is yes. Break rooms and the activities that happen in them can boost team morale and support happy and relaxed employees, which increases creativity and productivity. And that makes it worthwhile to us. 

For more information about customizing your Orlando and Central Florida break room menu with cafe style coffee service, delicious fresh food and healthy snacks and beverages, please contact The Vending Station at (407) 891.7632. We look forward to hearing from you.

Happy employees are 13 percent more productive. With the holiday season approaching, it’s a great time to use the break room to show your Orlando and Central Florida employees how much they are appreciated, which just might increase happiness. 

The ‘traditional’ break room is often an under used space. To reverse that trend and spread cheer and happiness throughout the workplace, consider using the break room as a place for fun, holiday celebrations that will convey employee appreciation. 

Hold a Recipe Contest

Everyone has a favorite dish or two that they look forward to enjoying every November. Instead of only eating that favorite dish at home, offer your Orlando and Central Florida employees an opportunity to share it with everyone via a work sponsored recipe contest. Everyone gets to try the entries and vote on their favorites. The winner enjoys bragging rights as well as a hard-earned prize.   

Organize a Team Activity and Enjoy a Potluck Meal

Depending on the size of your organization or division, sharing a communal meal in the break room can be a fun way to build team or company morale. Each participant takes one piece of paper out of two different containers. The first piece of paper lists a potluck item that they are assigned to bring. The second piece of paper lists an item to donate to a prearranged organization such as a donation for a local food pantry or animal shelter. 

Give Back as a Group or an Individual

Serve your local Orlando and Central Florida community by participating in a volunteer activity as an organization. Organize a canned food drive, serve at a soup kitchen or volunteer at a local fundraiser. There are unlimited possibilities to get involved. If a group activity isn’t practical, make it easy for your employees to give back on their own. Give your employees designated time off to volunteer with an organization or help with a specific project.  

Compete in Festive Games

Encourage your employees to relax and have some fun while celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday by organizing the Thanksgiving-related Olympic games. The following games should bring out the kid in everyone. 

• Pumpkin Bowling: Instead of a bowling ball, use the roundest pumpkin that can be found. Set up the “pins” (paper towel rolls, water bottles or anything tall and thin) in the parking lot or hallway and bowl away. 
• Pin the Feather on the Turkey: Just like pin the tail on the donkey, pin the feather on the turkey requires a picture of a turkey on the wall, feathers (or a paper imitation) and a blindfold.
• Guess How Many: Fill a glass jar with candy corn, skittles or another small, favorite sweet treat and have participants guess how many are in the jar. The winner gets the jar full of sweets for the prize.
• Mini Pumpkin Hunt: Instead of the traditional Easter egg hunt, plan a mini pumpkin hunt. Whoever finds the most mini pumpkins wins a gift card to a popular restaurant or bakery.

Holiday Grams

Another option is to offer to deliver holiday grams as a way for colleagues to say thank you to each other. During a specified period, employees are asked to choose several colleagues that they are thankful for and write a short note. The holiday grams are then delivered to the recipients and shared in a central location like a wall in the break room.  

Lastly, there is one more way Orlando and Central Florida employers can show appreciation for their employees around the holidays and any time of the year – offer a relaxing break room with sought-after snacks and beverages, fresh food and delicious coffee service. Employees truly appreciate that.

For more information about updating your current refreshment menu or customizing a new one, contact The Vending Station at (407) 891.7632. We look forward to hearing from you.

As the season shifts into the second half of fall, Orlando and Central Florida employees will soon be tasked with deciding between healthy foods and unhealthy ones. National Pumpkin Day (October 26) is a great time to start making healthy choices.

Why National Pumpkin Day? There are two specific reasons—pumpkins are very healthy, and they are everywhere this time of year. From coffees to pies and pastries, there are so many ways to enjoy this seasonal flavor.

Pumpkins are a nutrient-dense food packed with vitamins and minerals including vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, iron, folate, lutein and zeaxanthin, potassium, fiber, copper, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc and several B vitamins. Health benefits range from lowered risks of stomach, throat, pancreas and breast cancers to an improved immune system and increased heart, eye and skin health. 

Instead of almost always eating or drinking pumpkin-flavored favorites made with too much sugar, let’s consider four healthy ways to enjoy all the pumpkin deliciousness.

• roasted pumpkin seeds: A simple but healthy and delicious snack, roasted pumpkin seeds require just three ingredients; pumpkin seeds, butter or oil, and salt.
• pumpkin yogurt parfait: Yogurt parfaits are a great snack or mini meal to be enjoyed at any time of the day. Instead of adding fruit to the yogurt and granola, add pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spices, and enjoy the taste of fall. 
• pumpkin flavored baked goods: Finding extra time to bake your own can be a serious challenge especially with the upcoming holiday season, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy premade ones. Before jumping in, be sure to read the nutrition label and ingredients list so an informed decision can be made. 
• pumpkin chai latte: A hot beverage on a cool fall day is something to be enjoyed. For a healthier pumpkin chai latter, create your own with chai tea, pumpkin puree, spices and a non-dairy milk like almond milk.

If beverages or baked goods made with real pumpkin puree don’t sound delicious, try making your own pumpkin spice blend and add it to your favorite hot beverage. Most pumpkin spice blends include ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg, and ground allspice or cloves.

Rather than Orlando and Central Florida employees leaving the office to find delicious pumpkin treats, employers have an opportunity to offer healthy flavors including pumpkin to their employees via the break room. A customized refreshment menu with healthy choices and seasonal flavors as well as everyone’s favorites is a great benefit that can also help employees make healthier food decisions. And that is a benefit for everyone, including employers. Employees who are healthier tend to be more creative and productive and take fewer sick days which can lead to an increase in overall productivity. 

The Vending Station is here to help your organization create a break room refreshment menu that includes more healthy choices. For more information about healthy options or any of our other services including micro-markets and office coffee service, please call us at (407) 891.7632. We look forward to speaking with you.

What type of refreshment options are available in your Florida break room? Pantry Service? A Micro-Market? Vending Machines? In 2019, it’s very important to offer your employees a variety of snack and beverage choices. For a break room to be an appealing potential new employee benefit and an effective retention tool for current employees, the physical space and refreshment products available must meet both current and up-and-coming and expanding trends.

The trend of snacking while at work is growing, and it will keep spreading as younger generations represent an even bigger part of the workforce. For example, recent studies from Euromonitor, a market research firm, found that Millennials eat 3.05 snacks per day while GenXers consume 2.26 snacks. 

If a Millennial employee works eight hours per day, that means they are likely eating a snack almost every 2.5 hours (without considering lunch). Another way to look at it is how often do those individuals have to go off-site during their workday to find the healthy snack that they are looking for. 

Peapod also performed a study and found that (1) healthy snacks at work boost satisfaction and happiness; (2) 66 percent of employees enjoyed free snacks and were either very happy or extremely happy at work; and (3) almost 83 percent of employees surveyed preferred “having healthy and fresh snack options (e.g., fruit, vegetables, yogurt, low-calorie snacks) provided in the workplace.”

Combine the results of those two studies, and it’s easy to see why offering pantry service or free healthy snacks, beverages and fresh food is an easy decision. Pantry service is also a great tool to use to combat mid-afternoon munchies and energy slumps as well as a cost-effective employee benefit especially when compared to other types of employee benefits.

As with other company objectives, choosing a break room refreshment menu should also be a strategic business decision. Take the time to determine the best combination of products for your organization. The results might be surprising. Boost company morale and see an increase in employee interaction, bonding and overall productivity by offering pantry service or free vend in your Florida break room. 

The Vending Station can help customize the perfect refreshment menu and create a welcoming environment for your employees. For more information or to start the collaboration process, please contact us at (407) 891.7632. 

Will consumer awareness of food-related topics impact future refreshment menus in Orlando and Central Florida break rooms? The answer is yes; they already have, and they will continue to do so moving forward. All one has to do is look around to see snack and beverage options that are made without genetically modified organisms (GMOs), are low in added sugar or are locally sourced.

A recent Nielsen study, which asked two important questions, confirmed what many Orlando and Central Florida consumers already knew. Awareness of social issues related to the food and grocery industry plays a role in shopping patterns and will continue to influence shopping behaviors as consumers, especially Millennials and Gen Xers, learn more about different issues.

As of the end of the study, the social issues that ranked the highest in current consumer awareness were buy local (46 percent), GMOs in foods (35 percent) and no added sugar/sugar reduction (33 percent). A quick trip to Orlando and Central Florida break rooms will highlight that snack and beverage manufacturers are already aware that these issues are important to their customers.

The second part of the study, which food/grocery companies need to pay attention to, asked participants, who were currently aware of a topic, how interested were they in learning more about that issue. Topics that ranked the highest were pesticide/herbicide use in food production (66 percent), food waste in grocery stores (58 percent) and at home (57 percent) and products free from artificial ingredients (57 percent).

When combining current issues with potential new issues, three areas emerge: 

• which (chemicals, antibiotics, GMOs, artificial ingredients, etc.) are used to grow crops, raise animals and/or make/cook/bake snacks, food and beverages
• buy local
• combat all types of food waste

Taking these three areas back to Orlando and Central Florida break rooms, employers need to be aware of which issues are most important to their employees. If snacks, cold beverages, coffee or fresh food do not meet employees’ needs, those employees will go off-site to find what they need. And that is a loss for Orlando and Central Florida companies. 

Employees who visit on-site break rooms for snacks or meals are likely to be more productive and have more opportunities to have spontaneous interactions with coworkers which can lead to less stress and increased creativity. Now that sounds like a win for everyone.

The Vending Station excels at customizing break room menus that employees are excited about and works to ensure that menus change as employees’ preferences change. For more information about updating your current vending, micro-market or pantry service break room menu or customizing a new one, contact The Vending Station at (407) 891.7632. 

Making healthy choices at work is much easier today than it used to be thanks to a much larger variety of better-for-you choices available in the break room. A recent report by Oh My Green, a concierge-style provider of healthy food and wellness services, supports the idea as their report showed that their clients were willing to switch to healthy snacks, beverages and food if healthy options were available.

Additional snacking patterns appeared over the duration of the analysis including fruit as the number one healthy snacking choice and the frequency of unhealthy snacking declining. With unhealthy consumption decreasing, healthy consumption increased as more healthy choices became available, even when there was a variety of options in the break room available.

In addition to choosing healthy snacks, beverages and fresh food from your break room micro-market or pantry service, there are four other healthy habits to incorporate into your workday.

• Enjoy a cup of coffee or tea: Take the time to relax and chat with colleagues while drinking your beverage and enjoy the accompanying energy boost that follows a short while later. If consuming caffeine isn’t an option, don’t worry; enjoy a decaf coffee or tea instead. You’ll still be able to relax and talk with colleagues while enjoying your beverage.

• Go for a walk: Exercise is important for many reasons including your performance during the workday. Walking or other types of movement increases blood flow, boosts certain hormones and reduces stress. Spending time outside whether it’s sunny or cloudy also helps the mind and body relax.  

• Drink enough water: Staying hydrated is crucial for one’s physical and mental health. Dehydration causes many negative responses including a decrease in alertness, memory and productivity; all of which negatively impacts getting things done. Healthy options include regular bottled water, sparkling water or flavored carbonated water.  

• Reduce stress: Everyone experiences stress. Some stress is beneficial, but too much is harmful. The challenge is figuring out where the line is between beneficial and too much as everyone’s line is in a different place. Several ways to decrease stress include taking several deep breaths, listening to music or looking at images or pictures that bring happiness.

Whether Orlando and Central Florida employees realize it or not, making simple choices can greatly impact their day, for both the better and the worse. Employers can help guide their employees toward good habits by highlighting healthy choices that are available in their micro-market or pantry service and creating break room spaces that encourage collaboration and relaxation.

For more information about updating your refreshment menu or completely redesigning your break room, The Vending Station can help. Please call The Vending Station at (407) 891.7632 to take the first step.

The demand for fresh, natural and organic products is on the rise. With the continued interest in healthy eating, Orlando and Central Florida vending providers and employers have an opportunity to educate consumers about the newest choices in the better-for-you category. Lucille Beseler, president of Family Nutrition Center of S. Florida shared “that people are interested in nutrition and listening to the newest product options, which includes what is available in the micro market.”

Beseler’s statement is supported by an increased demand for healthy snacks. Automatic Merchandiser’s annual industry report shows the increase in demand as it found that fresh food and better-for-you product sales compromised a larger percentage of overall micro-market sales than before.

Savory snacks are no longer the only type of snack that might be changed to be considered better-for-you. Sweets, especially dark chocolate, are being made with healthier ingredients. A recent report by Convenience Store Designs covered the changes in chocolate sales and determined that better-for-you qualities like the benefits of dark chocolate or the addition of functional ingredients played an important role in increasing sales. 

But better-for-you chocolate isn’t the only sweet treat that Orlando and Central Florida consumers are looking for in their break room. The sought-after bold and hot flavors currently found in snacks have made their way to the candy aisle. In fact, sales of non-chocolate spicy and hot candy products are increasing at rate of 25% compared to non-chocolate candy.

While the health benefits of snacks, fresh food and beverages are very important to Orlando and Central Florida consumers, they also want to learn about how eating or drinking a specific product will feel and sound. For instance, is it crunchy, crispy or silky? Are there multiple textures within a single product? Products that share information about textures have a higher chance of being purchased. Combine bold and spicy flavors with touch and sound, and you’ll have an experience consumers are looking for.

Drawing your Orlando and Central Florida employees into the micro-market with a combination of healthy, bold and spicy, and textually-intriguing snacks can also result in multiple benefits for both you and your employees. A welcoming space where colleagues can spontaneously gather creates opportunities for creativity. Healthy employees who are also satiated and hydrated are likely to be more productive. And as snacks continue to replace meals during the day, they will continue to be a strong revenue driver.

Whether it’s time to update your current micro-market menu or create a new one from scratch, The Vending Station would like to help. We will help customize the perfect combination of refreshment options from healthy snacks, beverages and fresh food to office coffee service. For more information, please contact The Vending Station at (407) 891.7632. 

Consumer demand for convenient and healthy snacks such as cereal bars, energy bars and other snack bars is growing. According to market research firm Mordor Intelligence, the snack bar market value is expected to increase by 22 percent between 2017 and 2023. That translates to a lot of snack bars.

The researchers believe that the changing lifestyle of Orlando and Central Florida employees will continue to play an important role in the expected increase. Consuming three large meals per day is gradually being replaced with smaller meals or larger, healthy snacks that are enjoyed more frequently throughout the day. Manufacturers have responded to this shift by developing a snack bar for every occasion from protein-filled energy bars to fruit bars that will satisfy a sweet tooth.

But it’s not just any type of snack bar or meal-like snack that will do. Orlando and Central Florida employees are looking for healthy products with “clean” ingredients, reduced sugar, higher amounts of protein and functional ingredients. Reduced amounts of sugar usually mean fewer calories, protein stabilizes blood sugar levels and slows digestion, and functional ingredients serve more than one purpose. 
Other convenient and healthy snacks that have higher levels of protein and lower amounts of sugar and can be found in the break room include beef jerky, trail mix, Greek yogurt, cheese, nuts, roasted chickpeas, and hummus and veggies.

Even though the previously listed snacks are usually higher in protein, lower in sugar and often categorized as healthy, it is important to remember to pay attention to the serving size and the information on the nutrition label. Many of these types of snacks can be high in added sugar or calories. To help Orlando and Central Florida employees make sure that they don’t get too much, they should always ask, “Is the package that the snack bar or yogurt or nuts came in considered a portion or a serving size?” 

You might be thinking that they are the same thing, but no, they aren’t. According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, “A portion is how much food you choose to eat at one time, whether in a restaurant, from a package, or at home. A serving, or serving size, is the amount of food listed on a product’s Nutrition Facts, or food label…Depending on how much you choose to eat, your portion size may or may not match the serving size.” 

Another way to help your Orlando and Central Florida employees eat healthier is to offer healthy snacks and beverages in the break room vending machine or micro-market. The easier it is to find and purchase great-tasting, healthy options including snack bars, the more likely an individual is to go that route. There’s an extra bonus too. Satiated, hydrated and healthy employees who stay on-site to grab a bite to eat or drink are more productive and creative. Spontaneous conversations among coworkers always seem to happen when they are least expected.

For more information about any of our vending service options including office coffee service or to customize a menu for your specific location, contact The Vending Station at (407) 891.7632. 

For many in the Orlando and Central Florida area, the holiday season is a time for celebration. Maintaining healthy eating habits often fall to the wayside during November and December. Now that it’s the start of a new year, it’s time to reassess the state of one’s eating habits at work and at home. The Right Choice for a Healthier You™, a workplace nutrition education program that focuses on helping employees make healthy choices, can help.

The Right Choice for a Healthier You™ program is sponsored by USConnect®, a nationwide food service network with providers in the Orlando and Central Florida area. USConnect®’s network consists of the leading independent food service companies in the United States. The Right Choice for a Healthier You™ has an extensive website focused on making healthy choices. Visitors to the website can learn more about nutrition, healthy food options and exercise. The website is loaded with healthy recipes that are delicious and easy to prepare.  Additional resources link visitors to websites that provide fitness tracking, nutrition calculators, ways to sleep better and tips for reducing stress. The Vending Station is an independent vending service provider in the greater Orlando and Central Florida area. It is part of the USConnect network and offers The Right Choice for a Healthier You™ program to its clients. The company provides an extensive variety of healthy food and beverage vending options to their customers. Snacks, beverages and foods that meet The Right Choice for a Healthier You™ dietary guidelines are marked with the program’s heart logo so they stand out as healthy choices. This makes it easier for employees to make healthy selections when they visit the break room.

Employee well-being can be further promoted through corporate wellness initiatives that are supported by The Right Choice for a Healthier You™. Companies can rely on expert help in developing programs through free consultation services with a registered dietitian. Workplace wellness programs go a long way toward establishing a healthy mindset in the workplace and reinforcing good habits that extend into employees’ lives at home.

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is a continuous work in progress. This time of year, many of us have to work a little harder. The Right Choice for a Healthier You™ guides us towards better nutrition and better living now and all throughout the year. Check out their website at www.therightchoiceforahealthieryou.com.

The Vending Station provides premium vending, office coffee and water filtration services to its customers. Contact us at (407) 891.7632 to improve the healthfulness of your workplace in the New Year.

Finding the right balance between healthy and not-so-healthy foods can be challenging especially if one’s current diet feels boring, but it doesn’t have to be. A variety of new food trends can be found throughout Orlando and Central Florida that will satisfy a healthy craving or offer a bit of silliness and hopefully, bring things into balance.   

Healthy Food Trends

Turmeric Milk or Golden Milk: The primary ingredients in this beverage are cow’s or plant-based milk, turmeric, cinnamon, and ginger. Not only does this beverage contain antioxidants and powerful anti-inflammatory properties, but it has also been found to help form new connections in the brain and promote brain cell growth.

Gut-Friendly Foods: This group of foods includes sauerkraut, kimchi, miso, kefir, and pickles, all of which have undergone the process of fermentation or pickling. A short explanation of fermentation is that yeast or bacteria is added to a particular food and then feeds on the natural sugars in that food. The result is a preserved product that contains gut-healthy probiotics and other helpful nutrients.  

Drinkable Soups: Easy to enjoy on-the-go or throughout the workday, drinkable soups are made with vitamin, mineral, and antioxidant-packed produce and are packaged in ready-to-drink containers. Similar in consistency to smoothies, drinkable soups offer a more filling, higher fiber, and lower sugar option that can replace a less healthy snack.

Healthy is super important, but we also need a little fun in our lives. Enjoying fun food trends (in moderation of course) is a great way to taste something new and have fun.

Fun Food Trends
Rolled Ice Cream: Part of what makes rolled ice cream so intriguing is its preparation method. Using a process that is similar to the one used to make a classic Yule log dessert, liquid ice cream is poured on a cold slate which freezes the ice cream. The frozen sheet of ice cream is then rolled by hand, sliced, and served with a variety of toppings. Yum!

Doughnuts with Customized-Fillings: ‘Boutique’ doughnut shops have been popping up across the U.S., and the options are endless. Unique ingredients include sweet and regular potato, pumpkin, and fruit jellies. Fillings and flavors such as custard, snickers bars, and banana malt and toppings like bacon, marshmallows, and cereal can also be found. There’s a flavor combination for everyone.

Instead of seeing your Orlando and Central Florida employees always going off site to find something healthy or fun to eat, provide them with a reason to stay on site. Offer a balance of healthy and fun beverage, snack, and food options in your break room micro-market or vending machines. To create a customized menu for your organization, survey your employees about their preferences, but don’t forget to include coffee service options in your survey. Coffee, tea, and espresso-based beverages can also be fun and healthy.

Increase the odds that all of your Orlando and Central Florida employees can find something in the break room with a custom break room menu designed by The Vending Station. We can help you create a space that is inviting, fun, and relaxing all at the same time. For more information, call The Vending Station at (407) 891.7632.