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CNET
10 hours ago
- Health
- CNET
Hybrid Meat Is My Favorite Health Hack of 2025. Here's How It Works
Hybrid meat may sound like something out of a science fiction cookbook but the simple health hack is about as straightforward as it gets. If you're not following the latest technical food news, terms such as "cultured," "cultivated" or "hybrid" meats may have escaped you but there have never been more ways to eat meat -- or not eat meat -- and one of them might be the key to a diet with less of the stuff your doctor said to avoid. With summer grilling season on the brink, it's a good time to remind ourselves that the future of meat is here and it's objectively healthier if you do it right. Hybrid meat, the mixing of animal meat with healthier plant-based ingredients that mimic the taste and texture of meat is at the top of my healthy-eating hacks list for 2025. I spoke to Bryan Quoc Le, PhD, founder and principal food consultant at Mendocino Food Consulting, and Kiran Campbell, registered dietitian nutritionist for MyNetDiary, to better understand cultured, cultivated and hybrid meats, along with their food safety and nutritional considerations. What is hybrid meat? Both and other hybrid meat purveyors combine meat and plant-based ingredients to achieve a meaty taste with less cholestorol. Both Different from cultured or cultivated meat, this category of animal protein that consumers are likely to be introduced to soon is called hybrid meat. "Hybrid meats are products that blend meat with plant ingredients in varying proportions to create the desirable flavors and textures of meat, with the nutrition, sustainability and affordability of plants," said Le. Such products may eventually also be made from cultured meats, but are already on some grocery shelves using conventional meat, with Both, Choppy and Quorn developing products that aren't vegetarian, but extend the utility of meat with plant-based ingredients. Meatballs, meat loaf and pasta sauce are good places to lace meat with healthy nuts and vegetables. David Watsky/CNET "Hybrid meats are a smart and healthier option for people who want to cut back on meat but aren't ready to give it up completely," said Campbell. "They can also taste very similar to animal products, so you don't have to give up flavor or texture," she added. From a nutritional standpoint, hybrid meats are generally viewed favorably. "These products often have less saturated fat, fewer calories and more fiber and antioxidants than regular meat. Some even count toward your daily veggie servings," Campbell said, while cautioning against overly processed options. "The key is to evaluate the full nutrition label and ingredients list." This is similar to the argument with some analogue meats: the nobility of a plant-based approach may be negated by products whose ingredient lists are long and full of unfamiliar or unpronounceable elements. A DIY approach to hybrid meat Mixing lentils, mushrooms or nuts in with ground beef gives your meat a fuller nutrition profile. Alina Bradford/CNET While more brands enter the hybrid meat space, you can easily take a do-it-yourself approach to hybrid meats, which can both help to reduce your carbon footprint and offer nutritional benefits. "As a huge advocate for at-home cooking, concocting hybrid meat options at home is a simple and healthful way to add nutrients and reduce the amount of meat in a meal," said Campbell, without eliminating it entirely. Ground meats made from beef, pork, chicken or turkey can be blended with a variety of plant-based ingredients for hybrid burgers, sauces, taco and burrito fillings, meatballs or even meatloaf. Campbell recommends the following grains and vegetables that are easy, healthy and budget-friendly to incorporate in this way. "These additions enhance the nutritional value of meals and support sustainability goals by stretching animal protein further," she said. Tacos can be filled with hybrid meat without young ones or picky eaters catching on. Narcisa Palici/500px/Getty Images Lentils or beans : Black beans, kidney beans or chickpeas. They add fiber, plant-based protein and healthy carbs. Cooked lentils are especially good in tacos, spaghetti sauce and meatloaf. : Black beans, kidney beans or chickpeas. They add fiber, plant-based protein and healthy carbs. Cooked lentils are especially good in tacos, spaghetti sauce and meatloaf. Chopped mushrooms : Cremini or portobello mushrooms are awesome for adding a meaty texture and savory flavor. Just chop them up finely and mix into burgers, meat sauces or even meatballs. : Cremini or portobello mushrooms are awesome for adding a meaty texture and savory flavor. Just chop them up finely and mix into burgers, meat sauces or even meatballs. Walnuts : Meaty walnuts make an excellent supplement to a package of ground beef or pork in bolognese or burgers. : Meaty walnuts make an excellent supplement to a package of ground beef or pork in bolognese or burgers. Grated zucchini or carrots : These veggies are a sneaky way to boost nutrition. They help keep your meat moist and bring in antioxidants, fiber and vitamins like A and C. Just grate and mix them into whatever ground meat you're using. : These veggies are a sneaky way to boost nutrition. They help keep your meat moist and bring in antioxidants, fiber and vitamins like A and C. Just grate and mix them into whatever ground meat you're using. Oats or cooked quinoa : These help bind your meat together and give it a great texture. Plus, they bring extra fiber, plant-based protein and minerals like iron. I add oats to meatballs and meatloaf every time I make them. : These help bind your meat together and give it a great texture. Plus, they bring extra fiber, plant-based protein and minerals like iron. I add oats to meatballs and meatloaf every time I make them. Edamame or crumbled tofu : Lightly mashed edamame or firm tofu can be mixed into ground meat for a protein boost. Tofu soaks up flavor easily, making it a versatile and budget-friendly option. : Lightly mashed edamame or firm tofu can be mixed into ground meat for a protein boost. Tofu soaks up flavor easily, making it a versatile and budget-friendly option. Tempeh: Tempeh has a nutty flavor and firm texture that works great in taco fillings or stir fries. It's packed with protein and adds a nice bite. What is cultured or cultivated meat? Lab-grown beef browns up nicely. David Parry / PA Wire Cultured meat or cultivated meat, which is the same thing, refers to animal meat which can be produced without sacrificing the lives of animals. Unlike meat analogues such as Beyond and Impossible that behave like meat but are made from plants, cultured meats are animal meats that are biologically identical to animals. "Cultured or cultivated meats, also known as lab grown meat, involves growing animal cells in a bioreactor to produce meat," explained Le. "These cells are then added to a bioreactor to replicate in a nutrient-rich medium," he said, along with "scaffolding" made of edible elements such as cellulose and collagen, which help give a desirable shape to the meat cells being grown. (Because nobody wants a Möbius strip steak.) While the concept of lab-grown meat may incite an ick factor for some --though probably not more than the ick factor that would doubtless arise from witnessing factory farming first hand -- growing food cells from biological animal cells has been happening in the dairy space for years. Microbial rennet is a vegetarian-friendly coagulant that has been engineered to replace traditional rennet in some cheeses, an enzyme which is otherwise harvested from ruminant animal stomachs. And dairy milk without the participation of cows is already available in the US, with brands such as Bored Cow and remilk being stocked even at conventional grocery retailers. (I've personally had Bored Cow. It's all but indistinguishable from regular milk, and offers a longer shelf life.) While you won't find cultured or cultivated meat on your shelves today, in 2023 the United States Department of Agriculture approved the sale of lab-grown chicken by Upside Foods and Good Meat to restaurants. It seems a matter of time before such products are evaluated and scaled enough for widespread production. What are the safety implications for cultured or cultivated meats? Lab-grown chicken made its glitzy 2024 debut at a press event in New York City. David Watsky/CNET Given a sterilized lab environment, which is markedly different from factory farm environments, food safety isn't a big concern at this point for cultured or cultivated meats, but it merits consideration. "Food safety greatly depends on the process, and generally, we do not yet know what the potential hazards are in large-scale and long-term production," said Le. Meanwhile, however, the benefits may outweigh the risks. According to Le, "cultivated meats have the potential benefits of improving food security and nutrition since they could allow for larger amounts of meat to be consumed throughout the world in shorter amounts of time," he said, making nutrient-rich meat more broadly available around the world. Environmental impact is also a potential upside. "Although the research is still limited, it is likely that the amount of greenhouse gases emitted in large-scale cultivated meat production would be lower than those in conventional farming," said Le. Whether lab-grown meats eventually catch on will likely depend on many of the factors above, and how they are communicated to consumers. "Public trust and transparency play a major role in consumer acceptance," added Campbell. "People may have hesitations about how 'natural' or sustainable these products are," she said, even though early research is generally positive. As both a food writer and culinary-school trained cook, I'm eager to try these products. Are cultured and cultivated meats good for you? Lab-grown meat is coming to a plate near you. Firn/Getty Images The good news is, food scientists and nutrition professionals seem to be in alignment about the health benefits of these kinds of products. "Cultivated meat is as healthy as normal meat, since they are basically the same, although other nutrients can be added to cultivated meat," said Le. Campbell concurs: "From a nutrition standpoint, lab-grown meat is meant to be very similar to regular meat, with the same protein, fat and nutrients like iron and vitamin B12," she said. "Because cultivated meat is produced in a highly controlled environment, there is the potential to modify the nutrient profile by adding things like heart-healthy omega-3 fats or lowering saturated fat, but those improvements are still being researched and there is no telling if these changes will be any healthier than conventional meat products."
Telegraph
15 hours ago
- Health
- Telegraph
Stop demonising bread, I eat it every day
I eat a slice of bread a day, either for breakfast or lunch. That may surprise you, as bread doesn't have the best reputation when it comes to our health – but it's misunderstood. It's one of the first things humans made – there are records of flatbreads going back some 14,000 years. So it's part of our culture; let's not demonise it but enjoy it. But, in some forms, it should be a rare treat (for me, that's when it's topped with marmalade). If you're having it on a regular basis like me, make sure that it's both tasty and good for you. My everyday bread – and favourite treat options Most days, I eat sourdough rye bread that I make myself with wholemeal flour, rye flour, malted flakes, water, salt, a sourdough starter and some mixed nuts and seeds like in the Zoe Daily30+ (I've shared the exact recipe below). It's got a really rich taste, a nutty feel to it, lots of structure and you know it's doing you good. It's heavy, dense and fills me up. It's free from additives and preservatives, full of high-quality grains, is high in fibre and fills you up – meaning you eat much less of it than you would a shop-bought equivalent. I often make more than I need and freeze it – slicing it thinly, so it's simple to take a couple of slices and toast as you need it. But if I don't have any, I'll buy something like Gail's rye and barley sourdough or the robust rye sourdough from M&S. Sometimes I'll pick up a pre-packaged long-life German rye bread. These don't look very appetising but are nutritious and do the job until I can next make my own. I certainly wouldn't now buy the heavily processed supermarket bread that I used to, like white or even wholemeal sliced; but I'll eat it if I'm at someone's house or travelling and it's really the only option available. They're full of sugar, packed with artificial ingredients and won't fill you up. Once you get used to healthier breads, these options no longer taste nice, either – they're very light, dissolve in your mouth and feel very sugary. But I don't always just stick to my healthy rye sourdoughs. My guilty pleasure is warm bread in restaurants, which is often quite sugary but delicious – options like homemade ciabatta and focaccia that I cover in extra-virgin olive oil. I've found that I'm not very good at saying no to it but as I don't go to restaurants every day, I see it as a treat. The healthy toppings – and ones to avoid I'm now completely turned off the classic sandwich and popular fillings. In my 25 years working as a hospital doctor, I'd buy a daily meal deal (in health terms, probably the worst possible invention in the name of convenience). Tuna and sweetcorn or cucumber with mayo on brown bread was my go-to, with a packet of crisps and orange juice. At the time, I thought this was a healthy option but it definitely wasn't – the bread was dyed and full of sugar and additives and I don't think it had a single wholegrain in it. And all that tuna is probably why I've got high mercury levels now. Instead, I now make much healthier high-fibre open sandwiches at home with whatever I have in the fridge. If I'm in a hurry, I would opt for cream cheese topped with sauerkraut or kimchi. I've just done a new study for my book Ferment, which is out in September, and we tested Philadelphia cheese that counts as a fermented food as, surprisingly, it contains live microbes. We could be snobby and say it's mass-produced but, ultimately, fermented food improves your digestion and gut health and we don't eat enough of it – though I prefer to buy a cream cheese from my local delicatessen that tastes better (but I'm not too proud to buy Philadelphia). If I have more time, I would drizzle my toasted bread with olive oil, spread over some hummus (either regular or beetroot) and top with jarred artichoke hearts, as well as some sauerkraut or kimchi. As a treat, I love dipping bread into olive oil and balsamic vinegar – that's something the British don't do enough of. Not only does it taste fantastic, the dips are full of healthy fats, which counteract some of the sugar in the bread. It feels like a luxurious thing to do but may have some benefits. Ultimately, many of us choose the easy route and have the same single-ingredient sandwich most days that we spend an estimated £48,000 on over a lifetime. As well as being unhealthy, it reduces the diversity of plants you are eating, depriving your gut microbes of a treat. So it's important to look for new ways to enjoy our sandwich. The UK's more popular fillings – like ham and cheese, BLT, prawn mayo – are all pretty rubbish for our health. Instead of always having our bread with meat, try to think of veggie options you could make. Most people like hummus and have it in their fridge but most don't think to put it on a sandwich. Try to be more adventurous. How to pick a healthy supermarket bread It's pretty hard to find good healthy bread in most supermarkets. The top-selling breads all tend to have a nice healthy label promoting vitamins or fibre, some seeds scattered on top and they tend to look brown and may even mention the word sourdough on the front of the packaging. But you're never going to be able to tell from the appearance or the front of the packet whether you're buying healthy bread because there's no agreed legal definition for the words wholegrain, or freshly baked, and dyes are often added to bread to make them appear healthier than they are. Sourdough is sadly often added as a 'fake' ingredient to sell the product. If it's 'baked on the premises', supermarkets don't have to share the ingredients in it and this category includes breads that have been made in a factory, kept frozen for up to two years in warehouses and then thawed out and baked in-store. It creates a lovely smell in the shop but will do little for your health. Instead, you need to look at the ingredients list on the back of the label. There, you're looking for a high percentage of fibre in your bread (ideally over 6-10 per cent) and as little sugar as possible. It's also important to try to avoid too many ingredients, especially red-flag ingredients like emulsifiers and palm oils. If vitamins have been added to the loaf, it's often a sign that the bread isn't healthy. Adding vitamins is a legal requirement in the UK for bread that is made with refined (non-whole) wheat flour. A lot of the vitamins out there come from big factories overseas, often made using modified microbes, and there are real concerns about whether they actually contain what the labels say. The combination of ingredients like salt, sugar and fats in unhealthy loaves are designed to make them very easy to overeat, which is known as hyperpalatability. If you go for a healthier option with lots of fibre it will actually fill you up – you'll eat less and feel fuller. Loaves made with rye flour, spelt flour or wholegrains are best. Another good sign is that it has a short ingredient list. I know this is a really difficult food for people to work their way around and I don't think people should stop eating bread, but I do think everyone should be trying to select a bread that is healthier than the one they're eating at the moment. If you're just a bit fussier about the bread you eat, you can actually improve your health a lot.
Irish Times
20 hours ago
- Health
- Irish Times
Chef Gráinne O'Keefe: Eighteen months without sugar - ‘everyone asks about chocolate, but yes, I can still eat it'
It has been 18 months since I cut refined sugar from my diet, and it still surprises me how often people bring it up. When I wrote about it for The Irish Times last November, I didn't expect much reaction. I figured it would be one of those personal pieces that quietly disappear into the food section archives, but then people started asking me about it. And not just online. At the restaurant (Mae in Dublin's Ballsbridge) at least once or twice a week, someone comes in and asks, 'How did you do it?' or more often, 'How can I try it?' And the honest answer is that it is simple – but like anything worthwhile, it takes some effort. Giving up sugar initially, I wasn't just ditching biscuits and desserts. It was a full elimination diet. The goal was to figure out what was causing some inflammation and to reset my immune system. Having cooked professionally for 17 years, food has always been a central part of my life. I have also done more allergy and intolerance tests than I care to remember. Skin patches, blood tests, the lot. Nothing conclusive. But by cutting out refined sugar, among other things, something shifted. My skin cleared up, that sluggish post-meal heaviness lifted, and I just felt better. Not supercharged or transformed. Just noticeably better. What shocked me, even as someone who works with food every day, was realising how much sugar is added to products that should not require it. Mayonnaise, spice mixes and sauces – so many shop-bought versions have it right there in the ingredients list. It is not there for preservation. It is just there to enhance flavour and make things more addictive. [ Summer 2025: 100 great restaurants, cafes and places to eat around Ireland Opens in new window ] How to ditch sugar and still enjoy food. This one is a Tarte Tatin. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill Quitting sugar was not a gradual process – it was cold turkey, and very deliberately so. I needed to commit properly to figure out what was affecting me. Sugar did not show up on any test results, but when I eliminated it in its refined form, I noticed my body reacted differently. Subtle things disappeared – mild rashes on my cheeks, a flushed feeling not unlike what some people get after a glass of red wine. I wanted to isolate the cause, so I cut out alcohol too, just to be sure. READ MORE What was most interesting and unexpected was how my palate changed. I have never had a sweet tooth. I would happily skip dessert and go straight for the cheeseboard. But when I stopped eating sugar, I began to crave sweetness. Not cake or sweets, but fruit. Natural sugars. Suddenly, dates tasted like toffee. Apples were satisfyingly sweet. My body had adjusted, and I started to enjoy the taste of natural sugar. I began creating recipes that were sweet but did not use refined sugar – things I enjoyed eating that did not upset my system. Date syrup became a favourite. I would soak Medjool dates in water, blitz them into a smooth syrup, and use that to sweeten everything from dressings to desserts. Apple syrup is brilliant too, especially for things like apple tarte tatin. I would cook the apples in orchard syrup with a bit of butter, cream, calvados and vanilla. There are plenty of alternatives to refined sugar – honey, maple syrup, chicory root syrup, coconut sugar, xylitol. Each one has its place and not all of them are created equal. Some are better suited to baking, others work well in sauces. But what they all have in common is that they are not as stripped of nutrients or as concentrated as white sugar. Plus, there are the natural sugars already present in a lot of food – lactose in milk, fructose in fruit. It is all sugar, technically, but when it is part of a whole food, your body processes it differently. For me, that made all the difference. Consider eating two tablespoons of sugar – your body can process it (although you would probably find it too sweet), but if you tried to eat the equivalent amount of sugar by eating only strawberries, you would feel full long before you took in the same amount of sugar. That's the food's natural way of telling us when we have had enough. Concentrating the sugar removes that natural regulator. Sugar-free treats: Medjool dates, stuffed with blitzed peanuts and sea salt, topped with a banana slice, dipped in homemade chocolate, then frozen. It is like a Snickers bar but better. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill One of the questions I get asked most is about chocolate – can I still have it? Can I make it? The answer is yes, and yes. Even as a chef, I will admit I used to think chocolate was more complicated to make than it is. The truth is, making chocolate is ridiculously simple. I am not talking about tempering couverture or sourcing Peruvian cacao beans. I mean, every day, eat-it-on-the-couch chocolate. You just need good quality cocoa powder, cocoa butter or coconut oil, a sweetener like date syrup or honey, maybe a pinch of salt and some vanilla, warm the lot and mix. That's it. It sets in the fridge in half an hour, and honestly, it is delicious. Add a splash of milk to make milk chocolate. There is something satisfying about making things from scratch, especially when you thought you could not – and a lot of the time, the idea of it is much harder than the actual process. We have been sold the idea that convenience is everything, but convenience often comes with compromise. That compromise for me was inflammation, fatigue and feeling out of sync with my body. Once I put a little effort into cooking most things myself, I realised how little I was missing out on. If you have 30 minutes and a blender, there is very little you cannot make yourself – date caramel, nut butters, syrups and chocolate; even home-made mayonnaise. Once you do it once, you stop wondering if it is possible. Lately, I have reintroduced some foods to my diet. I eat carbs again – pasta, rice, sourdough bread – usually the ones we make in Mae with just flour, water, and salt, but processed sugar is something I have stayed away from. Not because I am trying to be saintly, but because I just feel better without it. I don't crave it any more. And if I want something sweet, I can make it myself. One of my favourite snacks now is a Medjool date, stuffed with blitzed peanuts and sea salt, topped with a banana slice, dipped in home-made chocolate, and frozen. It is like a Snickers bar but better – really. Sticky, chewy, salty sweet, rich and satisfying and there is no crash afterwards. If you are thinking about cutting sugar, my advice is not to make it a huge deal. Don't overthink it. Start by reading labels. Pick one or two things you usually buy and look for versions without added sugar. Or swap in something home-made if you have the time. Do not aim for perfection – just be curious. Try a few alternatives. You do not need to rewire your entire life overnight, bake your own sourdough or sprout your own chickpeas. You just need to make one small decision at a time. What am I eating today? Is there sugar in it? Can I swap it for something else? That's it. Don't tell yourself you can't. Remind yourself of how many incredible things you have achieved and how small and achievable it will be to remove something from your life that may not be serving you well. What pushed me to commit if I was getting tempted was the idea that sugar is being sneaked into foods you wouldn't expect. If there's anything that's going to spur someone like me on, it's proving to myself that I can't be controlled, including what I consume. For me, removing processed sugar was never about deprivation – it was about feeling like myself again. And even though I am not telling anyone else to do it, I would recommend it, in particular if you have been feeling off and cannot quite work out why. And yes, in case you are wondering, I am still eating dates. Every day. And I still haven't got sick of them. Gráinne O'Keefe is chef-patron of Dublin 4 restaurant Mae Recipe: Apple and Calvados Tarte Tatin (refined sugar free) Serves 6 Ingredients 6 firm eating apples (Braeburn or Pink Lady work well) 3 tablespoons apple syrup (such as Highbank Orchard Syrup) 1 tablespoon Calvados 1 vanilla pod, split and seeds scraped 25g unsalted butter 2 tablespoons cream 1 sheet all butter puff pastry Method Preheat your oven to 200°C (180°C fan). Peel and halve the apples. Core them and set aside. In an ovenproof frying pan or tarte tatin tin, melt the apple syrup and butter gently until combined. Add the vanilla seeds and pod. Let it bubble slightly. Add the cream and Calvados and let it reduce for 2 to 3 minutes until slightly thickened. Remove the vanilla pod. Arrange the apples cut-side up in the pan. Cook on the hob over medium heat for 10 minutes until they begin to soften and caramelise slightly. Roll out the puff pastry and cut a circle just slightly larger than your pan. Lay it over the apples and tuck in the edges. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until golden and puffed. Let it cool for five minutes before carefully inverting on to a plate. Serve warm with a little extra cream if you like. Recipe: Simple sugar-free chocolate using date syrup Makes one small bar Ingredients 60g cocoa butter 30g unsweetened cocoa powder 2 to 3 tablespoons date syrup (adjust to taste) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Pinch of sea salt Method Melt the cocoa butter gently in a saucepan over low heat. Once melted, whisk in cocoa powder until smooth. Stir in the date syrup, vanilla, and salt. Taste and adjust the sweetness if needed. Pour into silicone moulds or a lined tin. Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes until set. Store in the fridge and enjoy within a week.
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
FarmboxRx Partners With Health Care Plans To Integrate Nutritious Food, Prevent Chronic Disease
Fourteen years ago, Ashley Tyrner Dolce found herself a single mother dependent on food stamps to feed herself and her six-year-old daughter. Dolce parlayed that personal challenge into a plan to help solve a more global problem: She founded FarmboxRx in 2014 to help ameliorate food insecurity, which directly affects about 20 million people in the US, while at the same time improving the health of vulnerable communities she was once a part of. 'Healthy foods should be accessible to all,' Dolce proclaims. Yet nearly 50 million US people experience either food insecurity and/or a lack of access to an affordable, nutritious diet. 'This makes food the center of one of the largest public health crises in our country,' says Dolce. 'I would characterize the food situation in the US as disastrous. Diet-related chronic disease in this country is … a big problem. And it's a problem that the Department of Health and Human Services [HHS] Dolce says that our treatment of chronic conditions related to the long-implicated Standard American Diet – in fact, our treatment of health care in this country in general – 'has been very reactive rather than proactive.' Today, the country's 'really at a crossroads,' she says, 'where we have to begin thinking through the proactive lens. Yeah, because we just cannot sustain.' About 133 million US people, or nearly half the population, suffer from at least one chronic health condition. This number is projected to reach 170 million by 2030. That is simply not acceptable to such like Dolce. Thus, her quest to make 'health and prevention' primary, trumping mere 'treatment of disease.' For example, there's no excuse for the fact that we can accurately predict US health outcomes just by zip code, says Dolce. FarmboxRx set out to address those regional and other social determinants of health [SDOH], especially when it comes to food access and education. Because there's a long-studied, well-documented, critical link between nutrition and health, and because we have proven that we can largely prevent chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, and even some types of cancer, through a better diet and other lifestyle choices largely in our control. So, FarmboxRx delivers wholesome foods that meet the demands of the millions of US people living in food deserts, those who lack easy access to fresh fruits and vegetables, some of us take for granted. Critically, FarmboxRx became in 2021 the first and only national online grocery delivery service approved for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program [SNAP] / EBT nationwide, those aforementioned 'food stamps' on which Dolce's family once relied. The program serves millions of underserved people through the USDA. The company has partnered with nearly 100 health plans across the country, which then tailor life- and cost-saving benefits to their members, customized and personalized for each plan's nutrition and health literacy objectives: Members receive through a refrigerated FedEx box a regular delivery of culturally, linguistically, and medically appropriate offerings without having to travel or spend excessively. The idea is to build lasting healthy eating habits, says Dolce. Such a health care plan 'integration' of good eating habits is a central pillar in the FarmboxRx mission: With nearly 70 percent of all Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries citing food insecurity as their primary social concern, FarmboxRx delivers a sustainable solution that improves health outcomes through refined eating habits. The idea has led to more integration of nutrition into overall patient care plans. Dolce pioneered the movement and lobbied for better food policies to help make nutrition a covered health intervention. She was one of the earliest proponents of the 'food-as-medicine' movement. 'We're a mission-driven 'food-as-medicine company' that provides fresh produce and healthy groceries to people in need, particularly through Medicare and Medicaid programs,' says Ashley Tyrner Dolce, CEO and founder of FarmboxRx. 'In my mind, you know, if you have a chronic diet-related disease, the natural path should be when you're at your provider's office that you are given a prescription for food, you're given a prescription for a dietitian to teach you how to eat for your chronic condition,' says Dolce. 'And that should be your path forward, rather than a doctor just giving you insulin, giving statins. Right? So, we haven't stepped back in this country and taken the deep dive of how do we address these diet-related diseases that can completely be reversed, by the way, through proper accessibility to healthy food, education on how to eat for your condition, and then affordability.' 'Everyone wants to be healthy,' says Dolce. 'They just can't afford it. They don't have accessibility, and they don't have the education to go with it. If you solve those three things, people will take the self-efficacy journey.'
BBC News
2 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Broughton Astley boy, 8, sells fruit and veg on honesty stall
An eight-year-old boy is helping villagers eat more healthily by using an honesty stall to sell them fruit and vegetables he has grown in his is leaving his excess runner beans, sweetcorn and peppers outside his home in Broughton Astley, Leicestershire - and is asking neighbours to leave money for what they take"We trust everybody, and they just post the money through the post box," Jesse said."Sometimes they leave it under the table, sometimes they put it round the back, but they do pay." Jesse said he was using the money he made to buy gardening supplies, but said his ultimate aim was to be able to afford a bigger garden"I love gardening a lot," said Jesse."Just harvesting and planting things in the ground like the seeds and then just watching it grow and then getting something bigger out of it." Jesse's mother Amanda said: "The community's been amazing, we have people come not just from Broughton, we see people pulling up in their cars, they'll come over, I think because he's so small and cute. "They're very supportive of him, but people come over now, they bring us their empty plant pots."People are just loving seeing a little person doing a bit of gardening I think."Jesse, who said raspberries were his favourite thing to grow, started the honesty stall after seeing the idea on YouTube and said he hoped his efforts would encourage other people to take up the pastime."It's easy, just try," he said. "Most of the time it's simple."Additional reporting by Dan Martin
