With the release of the Strengthened Aged Care standards there is a heightened focus on protein intake within aged care settings.

The legislation now mandates alignment with the Dietitians Australia Menu and Mealtime Quality Assessment Tool, which is the nationally recognised standard for evaluating menus in residential aged care.

One of the key principles of the updated standards is the requirement for older adults to be offered three  serves of protein daily with each serve equal to  25–30 grams of protein.

This recommendation is supported by strong clinical evidence, demonstrating that older adults require regular, high-quality doses of protein throughout the day to maintain lean body mass, skin integrity, support immune function and promote repair and recovery.

To meet this target, menus must be specifically designed.  A practical way to reach the required 75 - 90g of protein per day is by incorporating high-quality protein sources at each main meal—particularly at breakfast, where protein intake is often lacking. It is important to also consider offering protein-rich food choices between meals.

Why Eggs Are Essential

Eggs are one of the most  versatile protein sources for older persons.

With approximately 6g of protein per egg,  they can be included as part of a high-protein breakfast, especially for residents on texture-modified diets who are unable to consume toast, nuts, or other typical breakfast foods.

Offering eggs daily is considered best practice for this nutritionally vulnerable group.

Practical Examples of a High-Protein Breakfast

A typical breakfast offering might include:

• 1 egg – 6g
• Slice of toast – 3g
• 150mL milk – 5g
• Cornflakes – 3g
• 100g yoghurt – 4g
• Peanut butter (1 serve) – 5g

Total: 26g protein

Additional Protein Sources to meet best practice recommendations

Alternative protein-rich options can be included creatively and rotated through the menu to provide both variety and help achieve the daily targets:

• Baked beans (150g) – 7g
• Shortcut bacon (50g) – 8g
• Chipolata sausage (35g) – 4g

How Menu Made Can Help

To support aged care providers in meeting these new nutritional standards, Food Solutions has developed MenuMade—a comprehensive digital solution designed to take the complexity out of aged care menu planning.

MenuMade by Food Solutions offers:

• A database of nutritionally analysed and IDDSI-reviewed recipes
• Tools for ensuring menus meet protein and energy targets across all therapeutic and texture modified diet types
• Support for meeting the Dietitians Australia Menu and Mealtime Quality Assessment Tool
• Practical guidance to align with Aged Care Quality Standards
• Features that can customise menu planning and development to reflect the food preferences, budgets, and religious and cultural needs of residents

Whether you're enhancing an existing menu or building one from scratch, Menu Made empowers aged care homes to offer protein-rich, compliant, and resident-friendly meals, without the guesswork

A New Era in Aged Care Nutrition

The strengthened standards represent a shift towards measurable nutritional outcomes in aged care. It’s no longer sufficient to simply serve meals—the content of those meals must now be backed by evidence and designed with purpose.

At Food Solutions, we partner with providers to ensure menus are compliant, nourishing, and practical.

Through Menu Made, we make it easy to deliver menus that support better health and wellbeing for older Australians — every meal, every day.