Is Office Fruit the Key to Happier Staff?

If you are an employer wondering how to make your staff more productive, loyal, hard working or put in extra hours, then you might want to start at the very source – making them happy. If you have a happy staff base, they are more likely to work productively and the overall work environment will be a better, more efficient one. But how does one make a lot of different people happy?

Many people aim to make staff happier by introducing ‘dress down days’ or ‘pizza Fridays’ or perhaps granting an extra day annual leave. But one unusual idea is to introduce fruit into the work environment. By giving away free food, and not just pizzas or snacks but something healthy and wholesome like fruit, you are telling staff one thing: that you care. You care about their health, you care about their hunger pangs at 11am, and you care enough to provide this fruit regularly. By leaving some fruit or healthy snacks in the staff room, it also creates a talking point for your employees. Perhaps you could also provide a smoothie maker (you can pick these up for under £40 online) for staff to mix up their own smoothies. There are many easy smoothie recipes on the Food Network, which you can send to staff. Again, this makes staff chat to each other, provides a talking point, and is great for your staff’s healthy. It is a much better alternative to coffee, which can dehydrate staff and leave them feeling an initial high followed by a later low.

One big problem employers have, especially through winter, is staff absences due to all the bugs circulating at this time of year. By providing fruit throughout the year (not just on odd occasions here and there, but weekly) staff can build up their immune system with vitamin C and other vitamins, like zinc, which help to strengthen your immune system. This means if a staff member does come down with a bad cold, or even the flu, they can recover more quickly. It also reduces the risk of the whole department coming down with illness for weeks at a time, because everyone has been eating this fruit and building their immunity. So, in essence, investing in healthy snacks, means a healthier and more committed workforce in the long run.

Not only this, but fruit helps you concentrate and work more productively. Fruitful Office, an office fruit delivery company, conducted their "Great Fruit Experiment" which found an 11% increase in staff agreeing that their workplace "enabled them to work more productively" following the introduction of fruit to the workplace. The benefits of office fruit are numerous!

Whether you have a large staff base or a smaller one, providing office fruit might be a cheap, easy first step into investment in your staff’s happiness, health and wellbeing. It is a simple idea but often the simplest ideas are the best!