An Inside Look at Food Service in Antarctica

During extreme temperatures, thermal blankets are placed over the freshies in the airplanes, and then in the transport trucks for the 45-minute drive from the “airport” to McMurdo.

The South Pole Station annual order is flown from McMurdo when the ship arrives. “At South Pole they also receive some freshies, which are flown from McMurdo when flights and space are available,” Senty says.

Army Food Safety Audits

Twice a year, a U.S. Army FSO stationed in New Zealand visits McMurdo by plane to inspect the shipment of food when it arrives and also conduct an audit of the food service facility at that same time, and then conduct another food safety audit in November.

“The FSO reads each data logger when the food is offloaded in Antarctica to ensure no products had any time and temperature issues during transport,” Senty elaborates.

“Our auditor is approved by the Department of Defense, so we can purchase food from approved vendors in different countries,” Senty mentions. “She audits any vendors in other countries that want to be suppliers to USAP.”

Eating In

All three stations utilize a rotating menu with a five-week template. “Changes may be made depending on availability of some foods,” Senty says.

McMurdo gets fresh eggs in the shell from New Zealand to make the breakfast eggs to order. “We get frozen eggs for omelets and scrambling,” Senty mentions.

During the busy summer season (December through February), the McMurdo dining facility, which operates cafeteria style, will feed 800 to 1,000 people throughout the course of any given meal period, with about 300 people dining at any one time.

“A lunch is served from midnight to 1:00 am for the night shift,” Senty says. “We call that midnight rations, or mid rats for short. And we have a deli buffet, pizza, and a make it yourself waffle station that are available around the clock. As a food safety measure, everyone must wear disposable gloves when making deli sandwiches.”

All fluid milk served is reconstituted from powder. “Butter comes frozen on the ship,” Senty says. “We also get cream and cottage cheese from New Zealand. Because of the high demand and the limited freezer space we do not buy ice cream for McMurdo, but we do have a soft serve machine. The South Pole gets real ice cream, however. There is no limit to freezer space at the South Pole.”

Allergen management is a USAP food service priority. “We do our best to identify all of the ingredients in all of our foods,” Senty, a certified ServSafe instructor and proctor, emphasizes, “especially the big eight allergens. We always prepare a vegetarian alternate to any meat entrees. The USAP cannot, however, accommodate special diets or severe allergies.”

South Pole Station

Senty typically makes one or two trips to South Pole Station each season via ski-equipped cargo plane to check on the food service team and inventory.

At an elevation of 9,300 feet,  South Pole Station  has an average monthly temperature in the austral summer of -18 degrees Fahrenheit and -76 degrees Fahrenheit in the austral winter. South Pole has a summer population of 150 and winter population of about 50.

Food service there consists of three meals a day, on a smaller scale than McMurdo. All South Pole provisions come through McMurdo by plane.

Palmer Station, on the peninsula side, is milder, with an average temperature range between 36 degrees Fahrenheit in the austral summer and 14 degrees Fahrenheit in the austral winter. Palmer Station is nearly 2,485 miles from McMurdo Station and is accessible by vessel from Chile.

The smallest of the three U.S. stations, Palmer has a maximum population of 46, who are also served three meals a day.