Aramark partners with AHA on wellness initiative

Aramark has announced a partnership with the American Heart Association (AHA) on an initiative called Healthy for Life 20 by 20 that seeks to improve the health of all Americans 20 percent by 2020. The five year initiative includes menu commitments from Aramark to reduce calories, saturated fat and sodium levels 20 percent while increasing fruits, vegetables and whole grains 20 percent in the more than 2 billion meals Aramark serves annually at thousands of schools, universities, businesses, hospitals, sports and entertainment venues, parks and other destinations.

The menu changes will be achieved through ongoing culinary and supply chain innovation featuring health and wellness inspired recipe development, ingredient sourcing and menu design, according to Aramark’s press release.

In addition, the initiative commits Aramark and AHA to work together to expand their health education programs to focus on key underserved communities across the U.S. Pilots will launch in Chicago, Dallas and Philadelphia, with successful solutions then to be replicated across the country going forward. “The programs will make a significant impact through culturally relevant and family-centric cooking and nutrition education and curriculum on healthier, easier, more affordable meals,” according to the press release.

Aramark and AHA will also expand ongoing consumer awareness and education programs at food service locations across their portfolios of businesses to empower consumers to make healthier choices through healthy cooking demonstrations, healthy food sampling, wellness workshops, dietitian Q&A programs, on-line and mobile health and nutrition information access and on-site digital wellness centers.

Finally, the two organizations will establish an annual learning agenda and health impact report that tracks and publishes the progress of the joint initiative and effectiveness of specific community programs.

Contact Mike Buzalka at [email protected]