Aberdeen-based ESS Support Services Worldwide has launched its health and wellbeing programme onboard TAQA’s platforms with the Cormorant Alpha rig being the first offshore installation to provide full nutritional analysis, labelling and education to its customers in the North Sea.
ESS provides catering, hotel and FM services across four TAQA platforms and has been working closely with TAQA’s Intelligent Health team to devise a programme that will help educate hundreds of employees about how to lead a healthier lifestyle offshore. ESS is launching the new initiative at SPE Offshore Europe (3-6 September 2013).
Rising obesity
ESS has launched this programme as part of a range of initiatives to help stem the rising obesity figures that have been recorded within the offshore environment over the last decade.Healthier recipes, education leaflets and health fairs have been created, and this June ESS rolled out nutritional labelling on its food across TAQA’s Cormorant Alpha platform.
This nutritional labelling is displayed in the form of GDAsand with more TAQA platforms set to follow suit in the coming months, GDA labelling will become a common feature across TAQA rigs, helping offshore workers make an informed choice about what they are eating.
Training sessions
The new health and wellbeing programme is made up of a range of different training sessions including; nutrition and health, energy balance, weight loss tips as well as how to get the most out of exercise.These training sessions will be interactive and adaptable to cope with the unpredictable environment of life on an oil rig and will also give tips and advice on how to adapt eating patterns to the unique working conditions offshore.
Nicky Martin, Head Nutritionist for ESS commented, “Currently over 65% of offshore workers are overweight or obese, and with this figure set to rise further in the coming years, we felt it was vital for ESS to step up to the plate and help our customers learn more about how to maintain a healthy, balanced diet in an engaging and interactive way. It has been great to work with the TAQA Intelligent Health team to create a health and wellbeing programme tailor-made for offshore employees and I look forward to developing this programme further in the coming months.”
At SPE Offshore Europe, ESS will be showcasing its new health and wellbeing programme to visitors, with a dedicated nutritionist on hand all week. Cookery demonstrations will take place at its dedicated kitchen stand (4E120) and ESS is also giving away handy tips and tools to educate visitors, such as pocket-sized cards featuring nutritional information and pedometers.
About ESS Support Services Worldwide
ESS Support Services Worldwide provides catering, retail, leisure and support services to the defence, offshore and remote industry. ESS is part of Compass Group, the world’s leading food and support services company, and specialises in providing food and a range of support services across the core sectors of Business & Industry, Healthcare & Seniors, Education, Defence, Offshore & Remote, Sports & Leisure and Vending with an established brand portfolio.