Jamie Harvie
Executive Director, Institute for a Sustainable Future;
Founder, Healthy Food in Health Care,
Duluth, Minn.
Hospitals should be bastions of healthy eating behaviors. The notion seems simple, but in reality that wasn’t necessarily happening, according to Jamie Harvie. In 2005 Harvie created Healthy Food in Health Care, an initiative developed with Health Care Without Harm, that helps hospitals make the connection between the health of patients, staff and the community and the foods being served. In 2006, the Healthy Food in Health Care Pledge was launched. Hundreds of hospitals have signed on, promising to make changes in the way they procure foods. For example, in a 2011 survey of operators who have signed the pledge, 94% of respondents served local foods or beverages in 2010 and 80% purchased sustainable dairy products.
Harvie’s work focuses on creating a community. The pledge did that by establishing a network for directors to band together around a common cause. While Harvie recently stepped back from Health Care Without Harm to tackle a broader system’s approach, his influence will have lasting effects.
“We can get cheap food, but there are some broader expenses associated with that,” he says. “People are becoming more aware of that. People want to change.” Harvie’s hoping he can help people make that change.
Foodservice Director has undertaken a bold initiative by identifying people who we believe are having the biggest impact on non-commercial foodservice. Our list may surprise you and should certainly intrigue you. Our honorees have backgrounds as varied as their personalities. They range from the father of the modern-day food truck to the wife of a sitting president. They include operators and suppliers, chefs and consultants, CEOs and civil servants. There are traditionalists and there are mavericks. Well-known names share space with hot newcomers. In all, 17 people, two groups of individuals and one institution compose the list. It’s time to meet FSD’s 20 Most Influential.