Did you know that March is National Nutrition Month? Created by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, National Nutrition Month is an annual campaign that focuses on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits. This year, the Academy chose the theme of “Go Further with Food” to encourage people to adopt healthier eating styles while reducing food loss and waste.
In honor of this theme of “Go Further with Food”, we wanted to take a moment and highlight the fabulous Plow to Plate program at New Milford Hospital. Established in response to astonishing upward trends in obesity and related diseases, Plow to Plate is a program that advocates healthy food as a direct path to disease prevention while promoting the local agricultural economy. The program delivers a fully integrated, healthful food service program to patients, staff and the community, using fresh produce from local farms.
Plow to Plate was born from the work of New Milford Hospital executives, area physicians, farmers and town officials, in collaboration with the hospital’s dining services partner, Unidine Corporation. The hospital itself became a model of change by transforming its Dining Services, eliminating processed and fried foods, and training kitchen staff to cook from scratch and procure local produce when possible.
Currently, New Milford Hospital and the Plow to Plate program, in cooperation with senior centers in New Milford, Sherman, Bridgewater, Roxbury, New Fairfield, Kent, Washington, and Brookfield, is offering Senior Suppers Monday through Friday in the hospital’s dining room. With a Senior Center I.D. and $5, you can enjoy a delicious, well balanced meal, surrounded by friendly people. After dinner, the hospital invites everyone to stay a little longer for conversation, entertainment, and special events.
Senior Suppers at New Milford Hospital are served Monday – Friday from 4 – 6 p.m. Breakfast and lunch are served Saturday and Sunday from 7 a.m. – 1 p.m. Reservations are mandatory, so please call 860-210-5011 no later than 2 p.m. on the day that you wish to attend.
The Plow to Plate program is hosted at New Milford Hospital, 21 Elm Street, New Milford, CT. Regular meals are served Monday – Friday from 7 a.m. – 6:30 p.m., and weekends and holidays from 7 a.m. – 2 p.m.
For more information on the Plow to Plate program, visit the New Milford Hospital’s website. If you would like to know more about National Nutrition Month, check out the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetic’s website.
This post was adapted from an article on the Western Connecticut Health Network.
