Healthy Food in Health Care

The Healthy Food in Health Care program harnesses the purchasing power and expertise of the health care sector to advance the development of a sustainable food system.

Through advocacy, and education, we motivate facilities to implement programs that explicitly connect all aspects of the food system with health. We catalyze sustainable procurement efforts, create clinician advocates, and inspire health care institutions to become leaders in shaping a food system that supports prevention-based health care.

Who We Are

Healthy Food in Health Care (HFHC) is a national initiative of Health Care Without Harm (HCWH), developed in conjunction with its member organizations. We work with hospitals across the country to help improve the sustainability of their food services. Founded in 2005, the program provides education, tools, resources, and support to health care facilities, making the connection between the health of patients, staff and community and the food they serve.

The HFHC program is led by a team of allies from HCWH member organizations around the country, as well as independent contractors that provide issue-driven expertise. Find a HFHC organizer in your region.

The HFHC program also helps to coordinate the Healthier Food Challenge of the Healthier Hospitals Initiative (HHI), a national sustainability initiative for the healthcare sector. Several of our programs, such as Balanced Menus, Local & Sustainable Purchasing, and Healthy Beverages are embedded in HHI.

What We Do

The program aims to leverage the significant purchasing power and health expert status of hospitals to promote a healthier food system. By purchasing foods that are produced, processed and transported in ways that are protective of public and environmental health, hospitals can make a profound difference in the food system and in their own food environments.

Getting Started with a Menu of Options

Many health care institutions have begun to adopt practices and policies to support a healthy food system — one that is environmentally sustainable, improves nutritional quality and supports human dignity and justice. Following these case studies, your facility can improve the quality of food choices by choosing among the recommendations offered in our Menu of Options (pdf).

We applaud the successes of 2013 Food Award participants!

“As a leader in health education in South Carolina and the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, we feel a responsibility to create an environment in which people can learn about and pursue healthy eating.”

—Debbie Petitpain, Registered Dietitian, Medical University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC
“At St. Michael’s Hospital we believe a sustainable food system can help redefine healthy food to include the health of the environment, social communities and the overall food system in addition to human health.”

—Heather Fletcher, RD,
St Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON
“This year, UCSF Medical Center Nutrition and Food Services has exceeded the goal set by the University of California of 20% sustainable food purchases by 2020, and it has been reached seven years ahead of the target.”

—Jack Henderson, Associate Director, Operations Nutrition and Food Services, UCSF Medical Center, San Francisco, CA
“Our mainstream vendors & local artisan partners have been tireless in their willingness to source and provide Overlake with nothing but the most sustainably produced meats, seafood, dairy, produce, and bakery items that our region has to offer – all while remaining in harmony with our fiscal responsibilities to the hospital, which has helped garner continued support from hospital Administration.”

—Chris Linaman, Executive Chef/F&B Manager, Overlake Hospital Medical Center, Bellevue, WA
“[This award] reflects the dedication of dieticians, gardeners, administrators and clinicians who have created organic gardens, wellness programs and education around healthy foods and food systems.”

—Judith Focareta, Med, RN, LCCE, Coordinator of Environmental Health Initiatives, Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC, Pittsburgh, PA