The United States Department of Agriculture is proposing to expand the number of vegan dairy products included in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). The food-assistance program, which serves about half of all infants born in the United States, aims to support the health and general well-being of women and children nationwide who suffer from nutritional deficiencies or food insecurity.

The proposed measures will increase the level of dairy and eggs provided to WIC users, but the USDA included alternatives to give users a choice to eat plant-based. The USDA will include product substitutes such as soy yogurt and vegan cheese as well as tofu.

“USDA is committed to advancing maternal and child health through WIC, helping mothers, babies, and young kids thrive,” Tom Vilsack, U.S. secretary of agriculture, said in a statement. “These proposed changes will strengthen WIC … by ensuring it provides foods that reflect the latest nutrition science to support healthy eating and bright futures.”

Treating Nutrient Deficiency With Plant-Based Foods

About 94% of Americans suffer from at least one nutrient deficiency. By introducing more vegan options and plant-based whole foods to nearly 6 million participants nationwide, the USDA is effectively working to fill nutritional gaps. If the proposed changes are approved, WIC will also offer participants a greater number of whole grains, a larger volume of fruits and vegetables, and canned beans, in addition to dried.

“It is great to see USDA’s new proposed rule increase WIC’s fruit and vegetable benefit,” says Sen. Cory Booker. “The new WIC package will strengthen a program that is proven to help mothers and babies flourish.”

“For the more than 6 million moms, babies, and young children who participate in WIC—and the millions more eligible to participate—these proposed revisions have the potential to make positive, life-long impacts on health and well-being,” says Stacy Dean, USDA deputy undersecretary for food, nutrition, and consumer services.

The USDA is taking comments on its new proposed updates until Feb. 21, 2023.

To learn more about a whole-food, plant-based diet, visit our Plant-Based Primer. For meal-planning support, check out Forks Meal Planner, FOK’s easy weekly meal-planning tool to keep you on a healthy plant-based path.

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For more than 15 years, Aramark has been working with the Humane Society of the United States to create initiatives that benefit both the planet and the people they serve. Apart from providing a wider range of meals to clients, Aramark says that the new plant-based targets are part of its initiative to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2030. They are the first contract catering company to sign the World Resources Institute’s Cool Food Pledge, which helps companies develop dishes with a low carbon footprint.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations reports that livestock contribute 14.5% of all greenhouse gas emissions, with cows being the top producers of methane and nitrous oxide. Aramark intends for the reduction in animal-based menu options to help move them toward net zero emissions, noting that half of its greenhouse gas emissions come from the food they purchase and serve.

“Aramark has made great strides in its commitment to tackle climate change,” said Karla Dumas, registered dietitian and senior director of food service innovation at the Humane Society, in a statement. “By setting tangible goals to introduce more plant-based foods, the company has shown a level of action and transparency that should please both consumers and client institutions. We value our collaboration and are excited to work with Aramark on shifting towards menus that are not only delicious, but are good for us, the planet, and animals.”

Over the next three years Aramark’s team will work with the Humane Society to train their staff on plant-based cooking techniques, develop new meals for their menus, and expand their marketing efforts so clients are aware of their expanded options.

Aramark’s pledge comes six months after another dining hall giant, Sodexo, pledged to make 42% of their meals on college campuses plant-based over the next three years. The trend among foodservice providers toward veg-forward menus highlights the growing demand among the general population for healthy dining options and greater corporate responsibility when it comes to environmental impact.

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Almost 4,000 attendees packed the inaugural event. The first day was for members of the industry, but the second day served as Community Day, inviting members of the public to attend and explore the Expo floor with its 125 sponsors and exhibitors, many of whom were debuting new or yet-to-be-released products.

The event was designated as the official trade show of the Plant Based Foods Association. “Our shared mission is to promote the plant-based foods industry,” said Michele Simon, executive director of the Plant-Based Foods Association, in a statement. “Through this partnership, we look forward to growing the industry together by educating professionals and consumers about the many benefits of plant-based foods.”

In addition to perusing the many plant-based products on offer, attendees had the mind-boggling task of choosing from a robust lineup of presentations and panels from some of the brightest names in the business on several different tracks.

Dean Ornish, MD, delivered a powerful presentation about undoing chronic disease while cardiologist Joel Kahn, MD, spoke eloquently about the effect of a plant-based diet on heart disease. Other highlights included T. Colin Campbell, PhD, who detailed his research that led to The China Study, and Michael Greger, MD, who dished on all things How Not to Die. Forks Over Knives hosted a panel about how a plant-based diet can prevent and reverse chronic diseases. Forks Over Knives Editor-in-Chief Elizabeth Turner moderated the panel (pictured below), which included Garth Davis, MD; Shivam Joshi, MD; Robert Ostfeld, MD; Tim Kaufman of FatManRants; and Robby Barbaro of Mastering Diabetes.

Plant Based World closed with a keynote presentation by chef Charity Morgan and her husband, NFL linebacker Derrick Morgan.

The expo was so successful that organizers are already planning a return appearance in New York City for June 5–6, 2020. Keep an eye on www.plantbasedworldexpo.com for updates. 

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The bill, S1471A/A4072, co-sponsored by Senator Brad Hoylman and Assembly Health Committee Chair Richard Gottfried, also would require hospitals to list plant-based options on menus and all other written materials provided to patients. It now awaits a signature from New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

“This legislation reinforces the powerful message that what we eat matters, at all stages of health and recovery,” says Michelle McMacken, MD, director of the NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue Adult Weight Management Program. “Plant-based foods such as whole grains, beans, fruits, and vegetables play a key role in preventing and treating cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and many other common conditions. Patients deserve to have access to these healthful plant-based options as an integral part of their care in the hospital.”

Part of a growing trend in health care, the New York bill follows a California law passed last year that requires plant-based options in public hospitals and prisons. Oregon came close to passing similar legislation, but it died in the state Senate last month. Media speculate that dairy lobbyists may have played a role in the bill’s demise.

States’ moves toward guaranteeing plant-based options for hospital patients aligns with recommendations from the American Medical Association, which in 2017 called on hospitals to improve patient health by providing a variety of healthful foods, including vegan meals, as well as the American College of Cardiology, which has recommended that hospitals offer plant-based meals to patients, staff, and visitors.

“Passage of New York’s plant-based hospital meals bill—as well as the law California passed last year—sends a clear message to other states that lawmakers, hospitals, and health care organizations like the American Medical Association and the American College of Cardiology all agree that providing patients plant-based meals is a critical strategy for fighting many of the nation’s leading chronic disease epidemics,” says Susan Levin, MS, RD, director of nutrition education for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.

“This bill is a great first step, but at some point, I hope they’ll go further and make plant-based the default meal option,” says ACC’s Nutrition and Lifestyle Work Group founder and co-chair Andrew Freeman, MD, who serves as director of cardiovascular disease prevention at National Jewish Health in Denver. “Hospitals, as places of healing, should enable and support marked lifestyle changes, like switching to a plant-based diet, to reduce or prevent repeat illness. We do a less-than-ideal job of that right now.”

Update (12/12/2019): On Dec. 6, 2019, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed bill S1471A/A4072 into law.

This article was originally published on June 11, 2019, and has been updated.

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In August 2009, Brian Wendel, Lee Fulkerson, and John Corry were wrapping up shooting their new film. It was a documentary with a simple yet revolutionary message—that many chronic diseases can be controlled or even reversed by rejecting animal-based and highly processed foods. The film had in-depth interviews with world-renowned doctors and scientists. It had stories of real people who changed their lives by changing their diets. The one thing it didn’t have was a title.

“I put out an SOS to my friends,” says Forks Over Knives founder and president Brian Wendel, who created and executive produced the film. “I asked all of them to give me 10 title ideas.” Dozens of suggestions came in over the next few weeks. “Each was more ridiculous than the last,” Wendel says. Then an email arrived from Wendel’s friend Armaiti May, DVM, who had already sent a list of ideas. “One more,” May’s email began: “Fork Over Scalpel.”

For Wendel, the idea quickly morphed into Fork Over Knife and then Forks Over Knives.

“Once I had it in my head, that was it,” Wendel says. The title concisely captured the film’s central message and served as a call to action: “Fight disease by changing what you eat, and you can avoid going under a surgeon’s knife. I viewed the scalpel as a metaphor for the whole medical system.”

Not everyone shared Wendel’s enthusiasm. Friends tried to talk him out of it, concerned that audiences wouldn’t understand. Some on his filmmaking team also needed convincing, but after they saw designer Geoff Nelson’s mock-up of the logo—a fist triumphantly gripping a fork atop Forks Over Knives, with a scalpel underscoring the last word—things fell into place.

On May 6, 2011, Forks Over Knives was released in theaters, garnering national coverage and stoking conversation about the role diet plays in disease. The Los Angeles Times lauded the film’s “unflinching detail.” The New York Times said it made a “persuasive case for banishing meat and dairy from the dinner table.” Roger Ebert wrote, “Here is a film that could save your life.”

As Forks Over Knives became popular, it became clear that not everyone caught the scalpel in the logo. “People thought that Knives referred to steak knives,” Wendel says. “Or they would say something like, ‘You’re less likely to need a knife when you’re eating vegetables.’ Even several film reviewers explained the title that way.”

In 2014, when Wendel commissioned a redesign of the logo, he decided to ditch the scalpel for a sleeker look. “So now, even fewer people get the name,” Wendel says with a laugh, “but as long as they don’t have to go to the doctor as much, I’m happy.”

Want to learn more about the whole-food, plant-based diet advocated in the film Forks Over Knives? Check out our Plant-Based Primer.

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The nutrition standards for school meals, which the USDA last updated in 2012, do not allow for nondairy milk or other calcium- and protein-rich plant foods to take the place of dairy, despite a growing body of evidence that milk does not prevent stress fractures or promote bone health in children and young adults.

“It’s important to realize that most people around the world do not tolerate dairy products, and many cultures don’t include them in their traditional diet patterns—other foods provide these nutrients in their diets,” says Sharon Palmer, RDN, author of The Plant-Powered Diet. She also notes,“Research does show that vegan diet patterns, which include no dairy products, are linked with multiple health benefits.”

The King Charter School board says that a team of nutritionists will help design the school menu to include plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and other components of a whole-food, plant-based diet, which has been shown to prevent chronic diseases.

The Florida charter is not alone in its mission: A 2018 report from nonprofit group Friends of the Earth highlighted a growing movement of school districts serving more plant-based meals. King Charter board member Maria Solanki hopes not only to join them, building King Charter with funds raised via a GoFundMe campaign, but to eventually expand and open locations throughout the country, with or without federal aid.

To learn more about the whole-food, plant-based way of eating, check out our Plant-Based Primer.

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To pay it forward, Chatlin founded the Plant Based Nutrition Support Group (PBNSG) in Detroit, providing anyone interested with educational resources, like-minded company, and tasty potluck dinners. Five years on, PBNSG has grown to nearly 6,300 members and 34 smaller groups throughout the state and surrounding area, with outreach programs such as beginners’ classes and course material for medical schools. We sat down with Chatlin to learn about his own plant-based journey and his commitment to helping others navigate theirs.   

What were your eating habits like before you were diagnosed with heart disease?
My diet was “eat everything I could.” Coca-Cola was my drink of choice, and when I went to a restaurant, I’d order not one, but three or four. I did know that I had a family history of heart disease and my cholesterol numbers were higher, but I was under my doctor’s care, and he was satisfied. And I was always a workout person. You know the old saying about how you can’t out-exercise a bad diet? Well, I didn’t know that. I just worked out as much as I could.

How did you feel about adopting a plant-based diet?
I can’t emphasize how sick I was at that time. I not only had a heart murmur; I had a left bundle block, sarcoidosis of the right side of the heart, an enlarged heart, and leaky valves. I was put on bed rest for three months to shrink the heart and stop the valves from leaking. So, here I was, a very active person, sleeping and cooking. I thought, “Is this my life?” But after two to three weeks, the foods I was forcing into my mouth—the beans, the squash—started tasting better.

Why did you decide to start the support group?
I promised myself when I was on that gurney, right before surgery, that I was going to give something back. I decided to put an ad in the paper and say, “Hey, listen, I have heart disease, I’ve been able to get rid of my angina, I’ve lost some weight and kept it off, I feel great. If anyone wants to know my secret, give me a call.” Within two days, 20 people called up. We had several meetings, and I shared what I knew. But I realized that I’m not a doctor, and there were medical questions being asked that I couldn’t answer, so I asked Dr. Joel Kahn if he’d join me.

What’s your best advice for someone trying to go plant-based?
You know, you see a lot of 14- or 21-day kickstarts. What happens is, you get to that 13th or 20th day, and you’re just staring at the clock knowing that tomorrow you can eat differently. I’m a fan of 60 days. If you go 60 days, your taste buds will change, you’ll lose 20 or 30 pounds, your numbers will drop, and you’ll say, “I don’t want to make a change, because I feel so good.”

Ready to get started? Check out Forks Meal Planner, FOK’s easy weekly meal-planning tool to keep you on a healthy plant-based path.

The post Meet the Founder of the Plant-Based Support Group That’s Thriving in Michigan appeared first on Forks Over Knives.

Forks Over Knives has been nominated for a 2019 Webby Award for best health website. Cast your vote to help us win!  

Founded in 1996, the Webby Awards recognize excellence on the internet in dozens of categories, based on criteria such as content, visual design, and overall user experience. The New York Times has called the Webby “the internet’s highest honor.”

Forks Over Knives debuted a completely overhauled website last November with the aim of truly showcasing the breadth and depth of the content and tools we offer online. “We wanted the new design to play up our beautiful food photography, delicious plant-based recipes, expert-authored articles on health and nutrition, inspiring success stories, and more,” says Forks Over Knives Editor in Chief Elizabeth Turner. “Every piece aligns with our mission of changing the way the world thinks about nutrition.”

Nominees were selected by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS), a judging body composed of 2,000 industry leaders and experts. “It is an incredible achievement to be selected among the best from the 13,000 entries we received this year,” said Webby Awards Executive Director Claire Graves.

All nominees are eligible for two awards: the Webby, which is selected by committee, and the People’s Voice Webby, which is decided by public voting. (That’s where you come in.)

Voting ends on Thursday, April 18, and the winners will be announced April 23. Actress and comedian Jenny Slate will host the awards ceremony in New York City on May 13.

Cast your vote today to help us earn a People’s Voice Webby! 

This article was originally published on April 5, 2019, and has been updated.

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Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jeremy Patterson, food adviser for the 75th Artillery Brigade and longtime vegan, made the changes after a soldier submitted a comment card requesting more plant-based options for religious reasons. Though the comment card was the catalyst for the menu change, Patterson’s push for more plant-based meals was also backed by his own nutritional awareness and desire to help the Army combat heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and other chronic conditions. Forks Over Knives caught up with Officer Patterson to get the dish on his plant-based mission.

How long have you been eating plant-based, and what inspired your transition?
I made the change to a vegan diet about eight years ago. I saw the movie Food, Inc., and it changed my views on what was necessary to survive and thrive in life. I was taught since [childhood] that eating animal by-products was necessary, but I began to learn that this was simply not a fact.

I’ve listened to doctors such as Kim A. Williams, T. Colin Campbell, Caldwell Esselstyn, Neal Barnard, Michael Greger, and Michael Klaper, to name a few. I learned that I could receive all essential nutrients from plants. Once I made the switch, I felt much better both physically and mentally. … Being vegan has allowed me to learn how to treat all living beings … in a way that shows compassion. … Many vegans look at veganism as a way of life and not just a diet.  

What motivated the menu changes at the Guns and Rockets Dining Facility?
Unit readiness is key to the success of any mission. [We hoped that] if we provided healthier options that tasted great … soldiers would gravitate toward those options. [It’s] a way to meet our community’s goal of being a healthy army community. Additionally, providing menu options that align with the civilian sector is one way to lure customers to dine at the military facility. These plant-based dishes tend to be some of the healthier options on the serving line. I believe we can prove to our customers that eating plants is not bland or boring, but a new eating adventure.

What are some of the most popular plant-based dishes being served at Guns and Rockets?
Vegetable enchiladas and tofu stir-fry.

How have people reacted to the new plant-based menu options?
[They’ve] been received well. … Some customers only dine on plant-based options, while others enjoy combinations [with meat options]. It’s all about providing more options to soldiers.

Many who try the items are shocked that they are 100 percent plant-based. I taught the culinary team how to make chocolate mousse with tofu and they could not believe the texture, taste, and origin. I also taught them how to make tofu scramble, which resembles scrambled eggs. This was another hit amongst the culinary specialists inside the facility. I’m working to funnel more recipes like these to Joint Culinary Center of Excellence at Fort Lee, in an attempt to share them military-wide.

I would hope that customers transition over to eating more plant-based items, as the knowledge that I’ve gained shows that this suits most [people] best to compete against heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and cancer. The great thing about plant-based items is that they tend to be high in fiber and lower in saturated fat, sodium, and sugar, with zero cholesterol.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Ready to get started? Check out Forks Meal Planner, FOK’s easy weekly meal-planning tool to keep you on a healthy plant-based path.

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In January, the Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) announced it would be joining forces with the Natural Gourmet Institute (NGI), the first plant-based cooking school to be nationally accredited in the U.S., to offer a new degree in Health-Supportive Culinary Arts. And this May, the Culinary Institute of America will organize The Global Plant-Forward Culinary Summit, a strategic leadership conference for established food professionals in Napa, California.

Health-Supportive Culinary Arts Program at the Institute of Culinary Education’s Natural Gourmet Center
The first students enrolled in ICE’s new Health-Supportive Culinary Arts program started classes this month in New York City. The program launched in January, when ICE announced it had licensed NGI’s health-supportive, plant-based curriculum to offer an accredited culinary diploma at the newly formed Natural Gourmet Center. “Licensing NGI’s curriculum and working with their faculty not only enhances what we do at ICE; it also brings a great cultural aspect to the program. With ICE’s facilities and technical expertise in the culinary arts combined with NGI’s ethos and plant-forward approach to food, it’s a great marriage,” explains Richard Simpson, ICE’s vice president of education.

The program will be offered exclusively at both ICE’s New York and Los Angeles campuses (the West Coast launch is slated for April), and many of NGI’s former faculty members will bring decades of plant-based cooking experience to the new center. “The time is right, the place is right, and the instructors are ready,” says chef-instructor Richard LaMarita. “The NGI program will most certainly blossom and come into its own at ICE while reaching more students.”

Global Plant-Forward Culinary Summit at the Culinary Institute of America
Billed as a think tank for food industry professionals, the Culinary Institute of America’s (CIA) conference, to be held May 1–3 in Napa, California, aims to help chefs make plant-forward dining the norm. “As the food industry seeks a healthier, more flavorful, and sustainable future, chefs and other food service professionals want to learn about menu strategies that leverage vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes, whole grains, and plant proteins in leading roles,” explains program director Anne McBride, Ph.D.

The summit is just one of the ways the school is spreading the word about plant-forward cuisine. “The CIA will be introducing a three-tiered professional development certification in plant-forward culinary arts and anticipates adding plant-forward curriculum to its undergraduate programs in the future,” says McBride. “Plant-forward is much more than a trend—it’s an industry imperative.”

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