Oil workers refine offshore dining

Scots’ demand for healthy options when eating away from home is growing – even among those stationed many miles offshore.

Scott Platform, a Nexen Inc installation employing 170 workers, has become the first offshore site to receive the healthyliving award in recognition of the low-fat, low-salt foods which make up more than half of the restaurant’s menu.

The food on the rig is produced by catering company Aramark, which employs 13 staff to cook breakfast, lunch and dinner for the platform’s shift workers.

Fresh salads, grilled fish and wholewheat pastas have proved to be particularly popular with the oil workers. Heavy sauces have been replaced by lighter dressings. Salt is used much more sparingly and alternatives to butter are used as often as possible.

Neil Thomson, Chef Manager for Aramark at the Scott Platform, said:  “We’re really pleased and proud to be the first offshore site in Scotland to receive the healthyliving award.

“The managers at Nexen have been very supportive of the work the catering staff have been doing to offer more healthy options, and the changes to the menu have been really well received by the workers. Everyone is really pleased that they can choose from a much wider range of tasty, healthy options, and we’re continually looking at ways in which we can bring in new items to the menu.”

Nexen’s Offshore Installation Manager Kevin Cooke, Chef Antoine Huguet and Aramark Chef Manager Neil Thomson.

The rig’s assessment visit was the most unusual so far for healthyliving award Assessment Co-ordinator Angela Kell.

After donning full survival gear for the helicopter flight from Aberdeen, Angela spent an entire day on the Scott platform. She said, “I met the catering team, who were really friendly, and was shown round the oil rig. They were a brilliant team and have a fantastic set-up, with an amazing variety of top-quality food. I was very impressed with the whole team and what they are doing.”

A healthy, balanced diet is especially important for offshore workers who are involved in physically demanding work and who don’t have access to alternatives. Aramark has shown that, even in one of the most remote places, it is always possible to incorporate healthier food options into menus.

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