Cassie Maher
WYNDHAM Council is among 21 Victorian municipalities developing regional food kitchens to deliver meals to the elderly.
The Wyndham facility, staffed by local government employees, would include a main kitchen making general meals and a separate kitchen producing low fat or diabetic meals.
The move comes after a fall in the number of commercial Meals on Wheels providers.
Wyndham CEO Ian Robins said the food production facility was in “early consideration”.
Hobsons Bay gave Wyndham its Meals on Wheels, but it no longer has the capacity to produce enough food to sustain the growing elderly population.
“Wyndham council delivers approximately 2650 three-course meals every month, and we expect the total number of meals delivered in the 2005/2006 financial year will reach 32,000,” Mr Robins said.
Meals on Wheels was an important program for the elderly of Wyndham, giving them the opportunity to stay at home rather than live in a care facility.
A business plan for the project was drawn up in January this year.
The project will cost each council between $50,000 to $100,000, depending on the funding, and it could be operational by July 2008.
Wyndham has not determined in which area the kitchen would be built.
