Guckenheimer cafes recognized for sustainability and nutrition practices

June 13—Four Guckenheimer cafes have achieved REAL Certification by the United States Healthful Food Council (USHFC).These cafes are the first corporate locations to be certified by the organization. The announcement of the certification, which concludes a six-month pilot program, was revealed at the first annual Menus of Change leadership summit, co-presented by The Culinary Institute of America and Harvard School of Public Health in Boston.

USHFC's Responsible Epicurean and Agricultural Leadership (REAL) Certification, began as an assurance of nutrition and sustainability best practices in restaurants. These new REAL Certified locations mark the expansion of the program nationally, as well as with foodservice vendors running café operations within corporations, universities, hotels, senior living facilities, event centers and more.

The four inaugural contract foodservice facilities to become REAL Certified are:

Blue Glass Café, John Hancock Building, Boston
Café Hive, The Clorox Company, Pleasanton, Calif.
W6 Café, Google, San Francisco
Union Pacific Café, Union Pacific, Omaha, Neb.

The pilot program began in December 2012 as Guckenheimer collaborated with accounts to undergo USHFC review. Using a flexible points-based model similar to the LEED green building standard, USHFC's registered dietitians audited the cafés across a range of criteria such as the use of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, healthful cooking and preparation methods, moderate portion sizes, as well as behavioral components that encourage better for you choices and sustainable practices for food sourcing.

"We thank USHFC's bold efforts and the dedicated individuals at each account who have worked to make this certification a reality," Randall Boyd, Guckenheimer CEO, said in a press release. "The shift to nutrition-centric food at work has tremendous impact for businesses that we are just beginning to quantify. We are at the tipping point where data will verify that employee health and productivity are inextricably linked, and food preparation, as well as its presentation, is a large component of that cycle. Guckenheimer's core offering aligns with USHFC's objectives and the foodservice industry should be ready to rise to the occasion.