Charity that feeds seniors is revamping its menu for changing demographics
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Story of the day: As O.C. demographics change, Meals on Wheels expands the menu to include more Latino, Asian options
Orange County, as subscribers to this newsletter know, is far more diverse than those on the other side of the county line realize. Stale stereotypes about the place are as indefatigable as Angel fans.
Truth is: The O.C. of today is roughly a third white, a third Latino and a quarter Asian.
And it’s graying at the temples. The young suburbanites of yesteryear are aging in place with a median age of 40. Some 780,000 residents are 60 and older.
Demographic shifts led Meals on Wheels O.C. to change its menu to better reflect the tastes of its modern-day clients, who want something more familiar delivered to their doorsteps.
To accommodate them, as staff writer Sarah Mosqueda reported in her lovely Sunday piece, the charity recently began preparing more Asian and Hispanic dishes at its commercial kitchen in Anaheim.
“We know that especially in Orange County, the older population is the fastest-growing demographic, and it is a very culturally diverse demographic,” Madelynn Hirneise, chief executive of Meals on Wheels in O.C., told Sarah. “We are just this huge melting pot.”
Speaking of melting pots, and pans and woks, Sarah singled out delicious-sounding menu items covered in enough ranchera sauce and curry to smother those old ideas about who lives in — don’t use the “The” — O.C.
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KEEP IN TOUCH
Please send news tips or comments to john.canalis@latimes.com.
