Hello everyone! My name is Dana Jasick, and I’m a distance intern living in Denver. While doing my food service management rotation at the University of Denver I had the opportunity to attend a Forward Food sustainability conference with the campus Dietitian and the Sustainability Coordinator. Forward Food is a program of the Humane Society, and they focus on ways to provide more plant-forward dining options in facilities ranging from schools to hospitals. The speakers at the conference included the RD at Aspen Valley Hospital, a vegan chef, dining director and RD for a K-12 school district, and a local restaurant chef. It was eye opening to see all of the resources and ideas available to provide large-scale dining in a more sustainable way. The Humane Society will even provide training for kitchen staff members for free, and teach them how to cook plant-forward meals.
I walked away from the conference with a better understanding of how to provide more sustainable meals on a large scale, as well as positive changes I can make in my personal life. The presenters provided several ideas on how to get your staff/students/employees on board with making healthy changes, which included creating a wellness culture and educating to promote change. For example, a clinical Dietitian working at a hospital in Aspen wanted to eliminate bacon from their menu since it is a known carcinogen and its consumption is associated with an increased risk of cancer. There was, of course, pushback from the hospital so instead they took the opportunity to educate their patients by putting a sign out cautioning them of the dangers of bacon.
If you’re interested in learning more about the Forward Food program I highly recommend visiting their website: http://www.forwardfood.org/
If you’re interested in learning more about the Forward Food program I highly recommend visiting their website: http://www.forwardfood.org/
