Beehive Industries' new cookbook - 'Share A Meal, Share A Conversation’ - aims to reduce social isolation by encouraging the use of video call technology to cook a meal and enjoy a chat.

Brendan Lonergan from Beehive Industries, says the cookbook is more than just a collection of delicious recipes.

“We’ve been providing meals and nutritional support through our ‘Low Cost Meals for Seniors’ program for many years. When COVID-19 closed our doors in March, we rapidly adapted our services to continue caring for seniors and those living with disability who were staying safe – but often alone – at home,” he said.

“We began delivering weekly food parcels filled with fruit, vegetables and pantry staples but then we started thinking about how we could do more than fill pantries. We really wanted to help fight the loneliness of cooking meals for one and try to fill that empty space at the dinner table.”

The cookbook uniquely brings together recipes from Beehive Industries’ Healthy Eating Ambassador and MasterChef All Star, Kumar Pereira, and Beehive Industries Chef, Linda Westacott, with a self-help guide to video chat technology provided by Telstra’s Tech Savvy Seniors program.

The publication is a collaborative effort with partial funding from City of Sydney and a foreword by Beehive Industries Patron, Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley AC QC, Governor of NSW.

The Governor says she was delighted to contribute to the cookbook which helps to shine a spotlight on the dangers of social isolation and the effect it can have on mental health and well-being.

“The cookbook makes people to stop and think about someone they know who might be experiencing loneliness. It encourages them to reach out and take action by arranging a video call and enjoying the simple pleasure of chatting and cooking a meal,” she said.

“Families and friends have come together in kitchens and around dinner tables for generations to share stories and create caring communities so I hope this cookbook will help people to connect in that same way, even while they may be apart.”

‘Share A Meal, Share A Conversation’ is now available to download for free.

Beehive Industries has also printed 500 copies of the cookbook for distribution to support users, local government agencies and corporate partners.

Sponsorship opportunities are available for organisations and government departments wishing to support additional print runs of the book. To find out more, please contact us.

About ‘Share A Meal, Share A Conversation’

• 72 pages including 20 recipes and step-by-step guide to using video call technology.
• Recipes contributed by Beehive Industries Chef, Linda Westacott, and Healthy Eating Ambassador, Kumar Pereira.
• Linda Westacott was inspired to create the ‘No Bake Honey Pies’ recipe after Beehive Industries was gifted a jar of honey from the beehives at Government House Sydney.
• Many recipes derived from Beehive Industries’ popular ‘Low Cost Meals for Seniors Program’ delivered by Kumar Pereira.
  
• The cookbook was printed on the Konica Minolta Accurio Press C3080.