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Night shift getting food from the machine
About the organisation

Feeding
night shift workers

Food for a night shift usually breaks down on the clock: when hunger comes, there are no more deliveries and the shop, canteen and till are all closed. What is left is a colleague who does the shopping, with a list that nobody keeps up after a few weeks. Below is how to set it up properly. Looking mainly for what works on the menu at night? Read night shift meals.

Delivered by day, available at night Pay by card or app Halal, kosher and vegan
Check your night staffing What goes on the plate
Why it breaks down

Every home-made solution
fizzles out

Almost every night site has tried it: a fridge in the break room, a shared kitty, someone who stops at the shop on the way in. At first it works, because the team is small and everyone knows each other.

Then it stops. An agency worker joins who is not in the kitty, the buyer is off sick for a week, or something passes its date and nobody feels responsible. A favour quietly turns into a task that nobody was given, and a task like that gets dropped sooner or later.

Changing staffing Nobody owns the task Nobody checks use-by dates
What it has to do, permanently
The practical side

What gets
agreed beforehand

These points decide whether it works at night, regardless of the food you choose. Cost is part of the organisation too: what a smart fridge costs is under the price of a smart fridge.

Factory site during the night shift
In practice

From improvising
to a permanent set-up

01

Site check

Eight questions: how many people, which shifts, what is there now and what is nearby. A minute and a half.

02

Call

We call you back and go through the night staffing. If it does not pay for you, we say so.

03

Spot and access

Together we decide where the fridge goes, who can use it and how people pay.

04

Run and adjust

Restocking happens during the day, by you or a supplier, and the range follows what the night actually takes.

How to set it up
01
Buy
Have a facilities team that can handle it? Then take the unit into ownership.
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02
Rent or lease
No purchase price up front, to test it with the night shift.
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03
Organising restocking
Hand purchasing, filling and date checks to a supplier.
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Shift change at the smart fridge
Read next
01
Night shift meals
What works on a plate at night and what does not.
→
02
24/7 food at work
Every hour your site runs but your food offer does not.
→
03
Smart fridge on the shop floor
Warehouse, production and maintenance: where night work and shift changes are most common.
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Without a canteen
Food for staff Workplace without a canteen Alternative to a staff canteen Cost of a staff restaurant Setting up a break room Food on a business park Hybrid office Office snacks Short lunch break Smart fridge for your business
Hours, shifts and employer
24/7 food at work Night shift meals Food for the weekend shift Breakfast at work Food for agency workers Meal vouchers Food as an employee benefit
Frequently asked questions

About supplying
the night shift

Who usually arranges food for a night shift?

On most sites, nobody formally. Usually the shift lead does some shopping now and then, or everyone fends for themselves. With a small, fixed team that works; with agency staff, cover workers or changing hours it breaks down. If it needs to become a permanent arrangement, it belongs with facilities or HR, not the shift.

How does food get on site if nobody delivers at night?

By delivering it during the day and keeping it chilled. A stocked fridge is topped up at a normal time and is then available all night. Nobody has to come in at night and nobody on your shift has to take in a delivery.

How do people pay at night without a till?

By bank card or app at the fridge itself. There is no kitty or list to settle afterwards. That kind of list is usually exactly why an earlier home-made fridge on a night shift died off.

Does the employer have to pay for the night shift’s meal?

That depends on your sector, any collective agreements and your employment contracts; in some sectors there are arrangements for an allowance or a meal for night work. Have it checked by your HR or employment adviser. In practice both are possible: your people pay at the fridge themselves, or you set a subsidy per meal.

Is one night shift enough to justify this?

Rarely on its own. The sum is almost always about the whole site, with the early and late shifts, weekends and visitors included. If you only have a small night crew and nobody else, we will say so. A fridge that sells too little will be standing empty within six months.

Is your night shift running on its own shopping?

Eight short questions about your shifts and your site. We call you back and tell you whether a permanent set-up pays off for you, and what it looks like in practice.

Free site check See the options

Takes about 90 seconds · no obligation · no contact details until the last step