NHS to serve game to hospital patients

Let's face it, being in hospital is never a great time. If you find yourself wearing one of those peculiar open-backed gowns, the chances are that something, somewhere has gone awry. Add to that the harsh glare of the lighting, the dubious comfort of the beds and the all-pervading smell of disinfectant, and you have the ingredients for a pretty unpleasant time of things.

However, one of the oft-moaned about elements of a hospital stay could be set to change: the infamous hospital food. This weekend the Telegraph reported that five NHS hospitals are to trial serving game to patients over the coming weeks. The paper also reports that there is a similar trial in the offing for the MoD to supply game meals to the armed forces.

Hospital food is famously uninspiring, until now

These deals have come about thanks to the hard work of British Game Assurrance (BGA), who said: "Pheasant, partridge and venison are being snapped up by hospital caterers as a nutritious and affordable addition to patient meals. We have been working with various organisations to promote this healthy, sustainable protein and the NHS was a natural fit.”

The health benefits of game

The Telegraph article, which can be found here, is fulsome in its praise for game, particularly highlighting the health benefits, reading: "As well as being nutritionally better than other meats it is higher in selenium - which is thought to reduce the risk of certain cancers, protect against heart disease and boost the immune system." The article goes on to say: "Low in fat and cholesterol, game meat is prized as one of the healthiest meats available. It is also rich in Omega-6 fatty acids and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, both of which help lower cholesterol levels."

Liam Stokes, CO of British Game Assurance, said: 

“Game is very high-quality meat, it is high-protein, low-fat and has an excellent micronutrient profile, so is a good fit for NHS patients. The game the NHS will be trialling will be sourced from estates that are both lead-free and assured by British Game Assurance, which is the gold standard of sustainable game procurement.”

Of course, there's the added bonus that game is delicious, not something that can be said of much hospital-fare, something that Mr Stokes was also keen to highlight: “We have been helping the NHS develop recipes that will not only be healthy and sustainable, but will provide patients with a tasty and interesting option.”

As one might expect, the news has been warmly welcomed by the fieldsports community. Tim Bonner, Chief Executive of Countryside Alliance wrote: 

This is great news for shooting - as one wise pollster said to me after a focus group on public attitudes to the countryside: “Everyone who has ever eaten a pheasant is a friend of shooting” - but it will require shoots to plan for next season both in terms of moving to non-lead cartridges and getting BGA assurance in place.

He went on to highlight the important role played by the BGA in giving organisations like the NHS and MoD the confidence to source British game, and the role that guns have in ensuring that the places that they shoot are doing their bit for shooting. "The role of the BGA in assuring game farms and shoots, and then in opening up new markets for game is absolutely critical, not least when we are in parliament promoting game shooting and defending it from legislative attacks," he said, adding. "There are different levels of self-regulation for smaller shoots than for those operating on a large scale, but wherever you are shooting you should be asking whether the shoot is BGA assured and if not, why not."

Chris Horne, Managing Director of GunsOnPegs, also praised the initiative and highlighted the importance of a strong market for game, saying: 

This is a wonderful development. The benefits of game have long been known by the shooting community, so I’m glad to see them being recognised at this level. It is also another vital step in the objective of ‘social license’ for game shooting with more people being exposed to its benefits. The BGA is vital to being able to achieve this, without its assurance scheme, we would simply not be able to take advanatage of the increasing demand for assured steel shot game. I can only encourage more shoots to join the BGA to demonstrate their standards and quality product they produce.