The document summarizes the results of a SHRM poll on healthy food and drinks in the workplace. It finds that 60% of organizations do not have policies promoting healthy options, though larger organizations are more likely to. Most employees responded favorably to such efforts. Over half of organizations offer healthier vending and meeting options, though provisions vary by organization size, sector and location. Respondents were split on whether regulating workplace food is HR's role.

1. SHRM Poll: Healthy Food and Drinks in the
Workplace
August 13, 2010

2. Does your organization have a formal or informal practice and/or policy
in place that promotes healthy food and drinks for work-related
functions where food is served, in on-site vending machines, in the
company cafeteria, etc.?
Yes, 40%
No, 60%
Note: n = 578. Excludes respondents who answered "not sure/not applicable” (3%).
Healthy Food and Drink in the Workplace| ©SHRM 2010 2

3. Does your organization have a formal or informal practice and/or policy
in place that promotes healthy food and drinks for work-related
functions where food is served, in on-site vending machines, in the
company cafeteria, etc.?
Comparison by Organization Staff Size, Region and Operations Location
• Formal or informal practice and/or policy promoting healthy food and drinks (by staff size): Larger
organizations (those with 2,500 or more employees) were more likely than organizations with fewer than 500
employees to report having a formal and/or informal practice and/or policy promoting healthy food and drinks in the
workplace.
Smaller Organizations Larger Organizations Differences Based on
Organization Staff Size
•1 to 99 employees (28%) •2,500 to 24,999 Larger organizations >
•100 to 499 employees employees (49%) smaller organizations
(36%) •25,000 or more
employees (65%)
• Formal or informal practice and/or policy promoting healthy food and drinks (by region): Organizations in the
Midwest (49%) were more likely than organizations in the West (29%) to have a formal or informal practice and/or
policy promoting healthy food and drinks in the workplace.
• Formal or informal practice and/or policy promoting healthy food and drinks (by operations location):
Organizations with multinational operations (59%) were more likely than organizations with U.S.-only operations
(33%) to have a formal or informal practice and/or policy promoting healthy food and drinks in the workplace.
Healthy Food and Drink in the Workplace| ©SHRM 2010 3

4. How have employees at your organization responded to your
organization’s efforts to promote healthy food and drinks for work-
related functions where food is served, in on-site vending machines, in
the company cafeteria, etc.?
2%
24%
73%
Very favorably Favorably Unfavorably Very unfavorably
Note: n = 207. Asked only of HR professionals whose organizations have formal or informal policies promoting healthy food and drinks in the
workplace. Excludes respondents who answered "not sure” (6%). Percentages do not total 100% due to rounding.
Healthy Food and Drink in the Workplace| ©SHRM 2010 4

5. Does your organization take any of the following steps to help promote
healthy food and drinks in the workplace?
Yes No
Offer healthier food/beverage options at company meetings, parties, events, etc. 64% 36%
(e.g., less caloric, no trans fat, more vegetables, fruits) (n = 538)
Offer healthier food/beverage options in cafeteria (e.g., less caloric, no trans fat, more 58% 42%
vegetables, fruits) (n = 326)
Offer healthier vending machine options (e.g., less caloric, no trans fat) (n = 489) 52% 48%
Provide point-of-purchase nutritional content (e.g., calories, fat content) on cafeteria 27% 73%
menus (n = 319)
Restrict the kind of food/beverages that employees can bring to the workplace to
share with co-workers for meetings, parties, events, etc. (e.g., no high-calorie foods, 1% 99%
sweets) (n = 549)
Ban all outside food/beverage that employees bring to the workplace to share with co- 100%
workers for meetings, parties, events, etc. (n = 550)
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Note: Excludes respondents who answered “not sure/not applicable” and “other” response category.
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6. Does your organization take any of the following steps to help promote
healthy food and drinks in the workplace?
Comparison by Organization Staff Size
• Provide point-of-purchase nutritional content on cafeteria menus (by staff size): Larger organizations (those
with more than 2,500 employees) were more likely than organizations with fewer than 2,500 employees to report
providing point-of-purchase nutritional content on cafeteria menus.
Smaller Organizations Larger Organizations Differences Based on
Organization Staff Size
•1 to 99 employees (10%) •2,500 to 24,999 Larger organizations >
•100 to 499 employees employees (33%) smaller organizations
(17%) •25,000 or more
•500 to 2,499 employees employees (63%)
(30%)
• Offer healthier food/beverage options in the cafeteria (by staff size): Larger organizations (those with 500 or
more employees) were more likely than organizations with fewer than 500 employees to report offering healthier
food/beverage options in the cafeteria.
Smaller Organizations Larger Organizations Differences Based on
Organization Staff Size
•1 to 99 employees (29%) •500 to 2,499 employees Larger organizations >
•100 to 499 employees (61%) smaller organizations
(48%) •2,500 to 24,999
employees (74%)
•25,000 or more
employees (80%)
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7. Does your organization take any of the following steps to help promote
healthy food and drinks in the workplace?
Comparison by Organizational Demographics
Differences Based on Differences Based on Organization’s
Organization Sector Operations Location
Multinational operations (65%) > U.S.-
Offer healthier vending machine options
based only organizations (47%)
Publicly owned for-profits (42%) >
Multinational operations (40%) > U.S.-
Provide point-of-purchase nutritional content on cafeteria menus privately owned for-profits (21%),
based only organizations (21%)
government agencies (4%)
Privately owned for-profits (86%) > Multinational operations (74%) > U.S.-
Offer healthier food/beverage options in the cafeteria
publicly owned for-profits (70%) based only organizations (51%)
Note: A blank cell indicates that there were no significant differences in this category.
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8. Do you agree that it is HR’s responsibility to regulate the type of
food/beverages provided in the workplace in order to encourage
employees to consume healthy food and drinks at work?
3%
15%
33%
48%
Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree
Note: n = 570. Percentages do not total 100% due to rounding.
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9. Do you agree that it is HR’s responsibility to regulate the type of
food/beverages provided in the workplace in order to encourage
employees to consume healthy food and drinks at work?
Comparison of Average Agreement by Organizational Demographics
Differences Based on Differences Based on Organization’s
Organization’s Region Operations Location
Average agreement that it is HR’s responsibility to regulate Multinational operations > U.S. based only
Southeast > Northeast, West
the type of food/beverages provided in the workplace organizations
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10. Demographics: Organization Industry
Industry
Manufacturing—other 15%
Health care, social assistance (e.g., nursing homes, EAP providers) 14%
Services—professional, scientific, technical, legal, engineering 11%
Financial services (e.g., banking) 9%
Educational services/education 7%
Retail/wholesale trade 5%
Government/public administration—federal, state/local, tribal 5%
Insurance 4%
Other services (e.g., nonprofit, church/religious organizations) 4%
Consulting 3%
Transportation, warehousing (e.g., distribution) 3%
Note: n = 550. Percentages do not total 100% due to rounding.
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11. Demographics: Organization Industry (continued)
Industry
Construction, mining, oil and gas 2%
High-tech 2%
Manufacturing—auto/auto-related 2%
Services—accommodation, food and drinking places 2%
Utilities 2%
Arts, entertainment, recreation 1%
Association—professional/trade 1%
Biotech 1%
Publishing, broadcasting, other media 1%
Real estate, rental, leasing 1%
Telecommunications 1%
Pharmaceutical 0%
Other 6%
Note: n = 550. Percentages do not total 100% due to rounding.
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12. Demographics: Organization Sector
60%
48%
50%
40%
30% 22%
21%
20%
8%
10%
0%
Publicly owned Privately owned Nonprofit Government
for-profit for-profit
Note: n = 527. Excludes “other” organization sectors.
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13. Demographics: Organization Staff Size
40%
32%
30%
23%
19%
19%
20%
7%
10%
0%
1 to 99 100 to 499 500 to 2,499 2,500 to 25,000 or
employees employees employees 24,999 more
employees employees
Note: n = 498
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14. Demographics: Region
40% 35%
26%
30%
23%
16%
20%
10%
0%
Northeast Southeast Midwest West
Note: n = 536
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15. Demographics: Other
Does the organization have U.S.-based Is the organization a single-unit company or a
operations (business units) only or multi-unit company?
does it operate multinationally?
Single-unit company: 31%
U.S.-based operations 72% Companies in which the
location and the company
Multinational operations 28% are one and the same.
Multi-unit company: 69%
Companies that have more
Note: n = 571
than one location.
Note: n = 572
• 15% of organizations indicated that Are HR policies and practices determined by
employees at their work location were the multi-unit corporate headquarters, by each
unionized. work location or both?
Note: n = 547 Multi-unit headquarters determines 43%
HR policies and practices
Each work location determines HR 5%
policies and practices
A combination of both the work 52%
location and the multi-unit
headquarters determine HR
policies and practices
Note: n = 400
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16. SHRM Poll: Healthy Food and Drinks in the Workplace
Methodology
• Response rate = 23%
• Sample comprised of 598 randomly selected HR professionals.
• Margin of error is +/- 4.
• Survey fielded July 15 – July 21, 2010.
For more poll findings, visit:
www.shrm.org/surveys
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http://twitter.com/SHRM_Research
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