Tools and resources

Hackensack University Medical Center: Better meat case study

• Hackensack University Medical Center
• Case Study
• Local and sustainable purchasing
• Food

Hackensack University Medical Center’s annual food and beverage budget is $5 million with an estimated $1.5 million spend on meat and poultry. They serve more than 2.8 million meals annually. In only 18 months, Hackensack University Medical Center now leads the country in achieving a 98 percent benchmark of meat and poultry raised without routine antibiotics. Leadership is driving change through…

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Balanced menus recipes

• Food Tool
• Food
• Food Service

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Antibiotic stewardship toolkit: Passing food purchasing resolutions

• Food
• Food and Beverage Purchasing

(Health Care Without Harm) Across the country, health professionals are developing resolutions calling for an end to the procurement of meat produced with the routine (non-therapeutic) use of medically important antibiotics, to preserve the efficacy of these drugs for human medicine. Health Care Without Harm has developed a toolkit of helpful resources for facilities. The toolkit includes a how-…

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Redefining protein: Purchasing considerations (Health Care Without Harm)

• Food
• Food and Beverage Purchasing
• Mitigation
• Purchasing

[Plant-Forward Future] Research reveals that certain dietary patterns have been noted to have the ideal composition for human health and reduced environmental impact. This guide offers procurement recommendations based on values of sustainability, nutrition, social, and animal welfare concerns. These considerations were generated based on findings detailed in "Redefining protein: Adjusting diets…

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Delivering community benefit: Healthy food playbook (Health Care Without Harm)

• Food
• Community Benefit and Wellness
• Toolkit

(Health Care Without Harm) Hospitals can tackle food insecurity, obesity, and chronic disease while promoting healthy, local, and sustainable food systems. The “Delivering community benefit: Healthy food playbook” inspires and supports health professionals with resources to address diet-related community health needs.

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Video: Delivering community benefit: Healthy food playbook

• Food
• Community Benefit and Wellness

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Community gardens and farms

• Food
• Community Benefit and Wellness

(Health Care Without Harm) Community gardens can take a variety of forms including rooftop gardens, schoolyard gardens, backyard gardens and neighborhood gardens.

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Farmers markets, mobile markets and community-supported agriculture

• Food
• Community Benefit and Wellness

(Health Care Without Harm) Farmers markets, mobile markets, and community-supported agriculture (CSA) programs promote access to healthy foods and can strengthen sustainable food systems by supporting local producers while improving the affordability of fresh, local produce for low-income communities. 

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Integrating sustainability requirements into health care food service contracting

• Food
• Food Service

(Health Care Without Harm) There are many opportunities for hospitals to improve patient safety, worker safety, and the overall health of communities and the environment via their food service operations. By implementing environmentally preferable purchasing and other operational and maintenance strategies in food service, hospitals can help to reduce patient, worker and community exposure to…

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Strategies to increase sustainable food options via GPOs and distributors

• Food
• Food Service
• Local and sustainable purchasing

There are many strategies a hospital or health system can use to increase the availability of sustainably produced food options via existing supply channels and relationships. This document offers several strategies and resources to implement.

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