Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States Presenting Sponsor of "The Future of Food" Conference Luncheon: Locally Sourced Meal Serves as Global Conversation Piece on Sustainable Foods

ROCKVILLE, Md., May 2, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States, the area's largest nonprofit health plan and care provider, sponsors the Future of Food lunch on Wednesday, May 4, from 12:45 p.m. to 2:15 p.m., at Georgetown University.  The conference will open the door on a global conversation of sustainable foods and solutions to a better, accessible food system for all.

In coordination with The Washington Post Live, The Seedling Projects, "Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States' ongoing commitment to healthy eating is reinforced with our involvement in the Future of Foods conference to engage world leaders, policy experts, government officials, and His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales in a conversation focused on the global impact of the world's food system and more specifically, to provide funding and support to the network of nonprofits participating in the lunch to showcase the area's sustainable food system first-hand," said Marilyn Kawamura, president, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of the Mid-Atlantic States.

The highly-talented culinary team of Bon Appetit Management Company will prepare a savory meal, sourced from 18 farms within a 200-mile radius of Washington, D.C. The following organizations, all supported by Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States, are each playing an integral role to host and serve the fresh, delectable, and locally-sourced lunch:  

• Seedling Projects: specializes in getting projects off the ground and building an activated and diverse community around each project.  Seedling Project's Farm to Desk D.C. is executed in collaboration with teachers, school administrators, chefs, volunteer gardeners, and non-profit organizations; Farm to Desk D.C. empowers D.C. schoolchildren to make healthy and sustainable food choices. The program brings the impact of Urban Farms, School Lunch Transformation, and a rigorous Food and Ecology Curriculum to schools in the nation's capital. Funded by a grant from Kaiser Permanente, Farm to Desk D.C. makes healthy lifestyles appealing and attainable for city children.
• DC Central Kitchen (DCCK): Graduates of the "Fresh Start" catering program will help serve the meal.  Through the "Fresh Start" program, over 800 adults have overcome addiction, incarceration, and homelessness to begin new career in the culinary arts.  In 2010, Kaiser Permanente provided DCCK a grant for $150,000 to develop the DC Central Commissary, which allows DCCK to employ more at-risks residents into the "Fresh Start" program, recover more local produce, and prepare more healthy meals.
• FRESHFARM Markets: Farmers and staff will be stationed at lunch table as hosts. The organizations 11 farmer's markets throughout the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia not only provide a direct to consumer outlet for farmers, but also work with gleaning partners to distribute leftover crops from the fields to those in need.  Gleaning is the collection of leftover crops from farmers' fields after they have been mechanically harvested or from fields that are not economically profitable to harvest.
• Martha's Table:  Through one of their educational programs, children were engaged in a lesson on herbs and transformed them into the napkin rings that will be used during the lunch.  Martha's Table finds solutions to poverty in the short term with food and clothing programs and in the long term by breaking the cycle of poverty with education and family strengthening programs.  Kaiser Permanente supports Martha's Table with financial funding to support programs focused on promoting nutrition and fighting obesity, a growing problem that plagues low-income families throughout the region.

For five years, Kaiser Permanente has supported dozens of nonprofit organizations throughout the Mid-Atlantic region whose work is dedicated to promote sustainable health improvements to social and physical conditions in communities, with emphasis on healthy eating, active living.  Initiatives such as urban farming and gardening, farmer's markets, and providing locally sourced foods are just a few examples of how the organization strives to build healthy communities.  Kaiser Permanente's ongoing support in the way of financial resources, research, and physicians demonstrates its commitment to building communities that support good health.

About Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States

Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States region, headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, provides and coordinates complete health care services for almost 500,000 members through 30 medical centers in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.  Founded in 1980, Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States is a total health organization comprised of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of the Mid-Atlantic States, Inc., and the Mid-Atlantic Permanente Medical Group, P.C., an independent medical group that features approximately 900 physicians who provide or arrange care for patients throughout the area.  Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States is considered one of Maryland's "Top HMOs," according to the Maryland Health Care Commission.  The health plan was ranked in the nation's 100 top commercial health plans and 20 top Medicare health plans – and the #1 Medicare plan for Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. – by "NCQA Health Insurance Plan Rankings 2010-2011 Private."  For more information about Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States, visit www.kp.org.

SOURCE Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States