FoodWorks allies with local eateries to promote produce consumption

Restaurant incubator FoodWorks, a unit of Compass Group that partners with local restaurants to provide them with operating space in onsite environments like office buildings, healthcare facilities and universities, recently launched an initiative called Green Powered by FoodWorks in partnership with Produce For Better Health Foundation (PBH) to advance fruit and vegetable consumption in America. Green’s launch in September was designed to coincide with National Fruits & Veggies Month, an annual, month-long celebration to inspire greater consumption of fruits and vegetables and elevate consumption as a national priority.

“This is a focus on a balanced and sustainable approach to health through amazing flavor experiences with that emphasis on fruits and vegetables versus a focus on vegan or vegetarian menu offerings,” notes John Coker, President of FoodWorks.

With guiding principles based on the Culinary Institute of America’s Menus of Change, Green highlights chefs across the country who create menus that are both healthy and sustainable by integrating more fruits and vegetables. Together, FoodWorks and PBH intend to bring the message of plant-forward dining in collaboration with chefs and restaurants through PBH’s Have A Plant Movement platform.

“PBH launched the Have A Plant Movement to leverage the plant-forward eating trend as a way to help Americans eat and enjoy more fruits and vegetables—the plants that no one is eating enough of—every single day for better health and happiness,” explains PBH President/CEO Wendy Reinhardt Kapsak. “FoodWorks’ partnership with PBH demonstrates their commitment to help keep fruits and vegetables at the forefront of menus and make away-from-home dining experiences more flavorful and enjoyable so that consumers want to choose fruits and veggies at every meal and snack occasion. We are thrilled to work with FoodWorks’ innovative team and extend the Have A Plant Movement across America.”

To implement Green, FoodWorks has created a network of partners across the country, with both larger and specifically local restaurants encouraged by the potential of more exposure, especially in non-traditional environments like corporate dining, colleges and universities, healthcare, manufacturing and distribution. The program first launched in major cities like New York, Washington DC, Chicago, Houston, Phoenix, San Francisco and Los Angeles, with more slated to follow later this fall and winter.

Here are some of the concepts that have already launched in various onsite environments, with concept descriptions from the restaurants themselves…

Photo: BARE Blends plant-based/gluten-free smoothie bar in Colorado is one of the concepts partnering with FoodWorks to brings its menu to onsite dining environments.