Page 20 - gfs0318_Magazine

COMMANDER’S UPDATE

Hard at Work on How to

Best Support the Marines

Lt. Col. Gary Spinelli, USMC, Director, Marine Corps
Food Service and Subsistence Program

Government Food Service: Please (UGR) Heat and Serve, which will be renamed to UGR Marine.
tell us how the past year as director of This ration is used for field food service missions and based on
Marine Corps Food Service has gone. acceptability testing should mark a significant improvement
Spinelli
over the current ration.
Lt. Col. Gary Spinelli: It has been a fast-paced year with
a lot of hard work by the Marine Corps Food Service team, from Government Food Service: An ongoing goal is building a
the installations and operational units to the staff at HQMC. stronger partnership with Defense Logistics Agency Troop Sup-
We also would like to thank the industry partners and DoD port (DLA-TS) and the Natick Soldier Systems Center to ensure
agencies we rely on to be successful. operational rations and unitized group rations meet field feeding
nutritional requirements, as well as meet warfighter expectations
Government Food Service: Please update us on progress in for quality and acceptability. Please discuss these relationships
achieving the three goals you set in last year’s Commander’s and the cooperation.
Update responses: to ensure food service Marines are adequately
trained and equipped to execute a field food service mission in an Spinelli: Both relationships are mandated by directives
expeditionary environment; to properly time meal and subsistence from Department of Defense. The strength of our relation-
support in a Marine’s day; and have the appropriate nutrition ships, however, goes beyond the words defined in an order. An
content to optimally fuel the warrior athlete to accomplish the example of this just occurred as the USMC, jointly with Natick,
next mission. completed small-unit testing for several operational rations
items. The results were to be briefed to the services and DLA
Spinelli: A lot of hard work by a multitude of team mem- Troop Support in February 2018. Those results, if approved, will
bers has gone into making strides in accomplishing these goals. be used to make menu changes and update DLA Troop Sup-
The vision is that we continue to make program improvements port contracts as appropriate. The services have also partnered
in support of our customers by continually
enhancing training and equipment, review-
ing program policies to ensure meal service
is scheduled in a manner that best supports
the Marines, and that the right nutritionally
optimized ration is pro-
vided, and that the Marine Pfc. Brandon Strong mixes
also understands how to Cajun sauce with shrimp
fuel properly for specific during the Maj. Gen. William
missions. For example, in Pendleton Thompson Hill Awards
for food service excellence compe-
partnership with Natick tition aboard Camp Lejeune, N.C.
Soldier Systems Center and The W.P.T. Hill award recognizes the
Defense Logistics Agency best mess hall operations in the entire
Marine Corps for outstanding perfor-
Troop Support, we have mance. Pfc. Strong is a food service
been working to provide specialist with Food Service Company,
a significant update to our Headquarters Regiment, 2nd Marine Lo-
gistics Group. (Photo by Lance Cpl. Leynard
Unitized Group Ration Kyle Plazo, USMC.)

20 GOVERNMENT FOOD SERVICE • MARCH 2018