Software for the people feeding our parents.
Mealward is an Australian aged-care software business. We build the kitchen and dining layer that NACA now demands: every meal tracked, every texture verified, every dietary tag honoured, every minute of staff time accounted for.
The story
Why we exist.
Australian residential aged care moves around 2 million meals a week. Most of that runs on paper, whiteboards, and the muscle memory of a head chef who’s been there 14 years.
When that chef takes a holiday, breakfast falls over. When NACA came in and asked "show me the audit trail for resident 4-12 over the last 30 days", the chef looked at a stack of paper and quietly resigned.
We started Mealward because we believe the people doing the actual feeding deserve software that respects how hard the job is. PCAs and GSOs taking orders shouldn’t have to type. Chefs shouldn’t have to chase tickets. Auditors shouldn’t have to wait. Residents shouldn’t have to repeat their preferences.
Boringly: that’s the whole product.
What we believe
Four things, no more.
How we got here
The short version.
2024
First field visit
Sat through a full breakfast/lunch/dinner cycle at a 100-bed facility in regional Victoria. Counted 23 separate paper handoffs between order, kitchen, and PCA delivery.
Early 2025
First prototype
An iPad that took an order, a printer that printed a kitchen ticket. Replaced the 23 handoffs with 2 taps.
Mid 2025
Pilot rollout
Three facilities. Breakfast service tightened from 90 minutes to 55. Texture errors dropped to zero in week two.
2026 onwards
NACA + scale
NACA lifted the floor on what kitchen and dining systems have to evidence. We were already there. Now we go to the next 50 operators.
We’d like to feed your residents.
Pilot is 30 days, free, and only converts to a paid plan if breakfast service gets faster and texture errors go to zero. Both have happened every time so far.