As we get older, it can be difficult to cook the food we want and get the nutrition we need on our own. As a result, many older people eat frozen meals heated up in the microwave, often spread over two days. Or just some lemonade in the evening.
- If older people instead eat good and well-prepared food, their next meal will be something to look forward to. In addition, wonderful flavors and smells can evoke fond memories," says Jamila Boccaccio Sundberg, nurse and founder of Livsaptit AB.
Livsaptit is a startup that offers meal subscriptions for the elderly. It was launched by Jamila after she won business development support in the I have an idea innovation competition.
- Through the competition, I came into contact with Dalarna Science Park's incubator and since then everything has gone very quickly. We have received financial support from Dala Capital and others, so already this fall we are conducting a pilot project in Smedjebacken. The goal is to verify the business idea," she says.
Risk of falls
The background to Livsaptit is Jamila's great concern for the elderly, combined with her interest in food as medicine.
- Growing up, I spent a lot of time with older people and it has meant an incredible amount to me personally and to my view of the importance of older people to society. On the one hand, that everyone is their own individual, and on the other that they deserve a good old age.
As a nurse, Jamila has seen first-hand the impact of good food and mealtimes on the health of older people. And what the reverse situation can look like.
- If food doesn't taste good or looks boring, it's easy to lose your appetite. In addition, regular portions are often too large for older people, leading them to eat the same food two or three meals in a row. Or they replace the reheated dinner with cream or yogurt, which does not provide enough nutrition. This, in turn, can lead to insufficient energy and therefore falls, which are unfortunately very common," explains Jamila.
Safe flavors
Livsaptit offers a subscription that includes cooked meals for five days a week: five main courses and five soup courses. Home delivery takes place two days a week and in the pilot project the menu is created by chefs at ICA Smedjebacken, in collaboration with Jamila. The cooking is also done at ICA Smedjebacken, where all dishes are cooked from scratch and adapted to the special needs of elderly people. After the turn of the year, another pilot is planned in Falun.
- We work with safe flavors that are recognized and with a nutritious content, adapted to the needs of the elderly, says Jamila, who today divides her time between working as a nurse in elderly care with the venture Livsaptit.
For the past year, she has been joined in the company by co-founder Sebastian Dahl.
- Sebastian is a communications and graphic design professional, so we really complement each other. It feels very good.
Jamila and Sebastian plan to reach out with their service both directly to older people and via their relatives.
- Many relatives are not able to visit and help, often because they live far away and have full-time jobs, children and other commitments. So for this group, our service can mean that at least they don't have to worry about their parents not getting good food, Livsapitit takes care of that.
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The Incubator - Dalarna Science Park
Livsaptit is one of the companies participating in Dalarna Science Park's incubator program funded by the European Union and Region Dalarna.
