Plant-based meal program for patients set to expand to 400 US hospitals after “remarkable” success
The initiative, which aims to increase the uptake of healthier, plant-forward meals, is now being rolled out further by a leading catering company which serves 290,000 meals to patients every day.
A plant-based meals program is being rolled out to 400 hospitals in the US after an initial launch has seen “remarkable success.”
Sodexo, a nationwide food service company that serves 290,000 meals to patients every day, initially trialed its plant-based health initiative to help encourage healthier food choices at hospitals in New York.
The government-backed program first launched at NYC Health + Hospitals, where it has since served over 2 million plant-based meals to patients since it began in 2022.
Described as a “remarkable success” by Sodexo, the program has helped to educate the health benefits of plant-based food to patients and increase the uptake of plant-based food. Scientific research shows that plant-based eating habits are linked to significantly lower risk of serious health concerns like cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and certain cancers.
In addition to the health benefits for patients, data from the initiative has revealed the plant-based menu swaps led to a reduction in carbon emissions of 36 percent and a cost saving of 59 cents per meal too. Patient feedback was overwhelmingly positive also, with a customer satisfaction rate of over 90 percent.
This success has now led Sodexo to announce that it is expanding its plant-based meals program to all US hospitals under its management.
That means an additional 200 hospitals will add the plant-forward program throughout this year, bringing the total to 400 hospitals taking part by 2026.
Part of the program’s appeal and success comes from its plant-forward ethos, which maintains a freedom of choice for patients but gently encourages them to choose plant-based meals through several new policies.
Sodexo collaborated with nonprofit organization Greener by Default (GBD) to create the program, which first overhauled the menus to increase the number of plant-based food options to include meals like Cajun Pastalaya, Southwest Potato Breakfast Bowl, and Balsamic Stuffed Portabella.
Crucially, plant-based meals were then made the default option for one meal per day. While patients were welcome to request meat options, the plant-based by default technique was a proven success in helping to encourage the uptake of non-meat options.
In the initial New York hospitals that first introduced the program, more than half of all patients chose plant-based meals despite only 1 percent of patients actively following a vegan or vegetarian diet.
File photo of plant-based food, showing veg and vegan meat skewers.
“The continued success of patient menus that position plant-based options as the default demonstrates how small, cost-effective shifts can have an outsized impact, while still preserving freedom of choice for diners and ensuring their access to nutritious, sustainable foods that don’t compromise on taste,” said Katie Cantrell, CEO of Greener by Default.
Somewhat simple changes like these can create a huge impact over time. Early data from Sodexo’s initial plant-based meals program showed that patients had been served 36 percent more plant-based entrees, while patient selection of meat-based entrees had declined by 20 percent.
Sodexo estimates that if just 10 percent of its daily meals served to patients are plant-based, this would total over 10 million meals served per year that are healthier, sustainable, and kinder to animals.
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