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RA at HMS Farm Tour Video
Please join us in supporting your local farmer.
Buy Local - Eat Local
Edible Boston article featuring
Restaurant Associates & Harvard Medical School
Healthy Food for a Health Care Community
by Rebecca Hansen
Our 2009 Herb Garden
planting pictures
These herbs and vegetables are used within the menus for Courtyard and Elements Cafés, as well as catering events.
Earthboxes, a window box type container, are used to hold all of the different herbs and vegetables.
Follow the link to order an Earthbox of your own or
to learn more about the growing methods.
To learn more about The Growing Connection
The Growing Connection Video's
  
TGC Video Earth Day 2009 Next Fest
The Growing Connection Herb Garden at
Harvard Medical School
 
LOCAL FARMERS' MARKETS
Red Tomato, a nonprofit organization that helps market local, family farms from New England supports our farmer markets.
Much of our produce sourced for the Harvard Medical School Cafes come from Red Tomato Farms.
Click here to see a list of farms.
Take the time to visit and support these farms.
Who is Red Tomato? Click here to learn more
Local farms are featured at both Courtyard & Elements Cafe where you are able to purchase fresh, seasonal produce for you and your family.
Red Tomato Video's
 
Red Tomato Info What is IPM
Restaurant Associates is Proud to Support our
Local Farmers & Ranchers
All Chicken Products are Organic and Free Range from Local Farms.
Elements Grill Station Only Serves Protein Items from Local Farms.
Grill Station Menu
Local Menu Items are Featured Regularly at our Main Course Stations
at Atrium, Courtyard & Elements Cafés.
Regular Featuring Farms:
Lucki 7 Farm, Rodman NY
Hayward Farm, Derby NY
FreeBird Chicken, Fredericksburg PA
Misty Knoll Farm, New Haven VT
Rocky Point Farm, Aurora NY
Ioka Valley Farm, Hancock MA
 
Restaurant Associates & HMS have Partnered with
Northeast Family Farms
as the Main Supplier and Distributer
of Local & Sustainable Meat & Produce
HMS has teamed with Restaurant Associates to GREEN the
service-ware in the cafes!
Introduced Greenwave & Fabrikal containers and cups made of sugar cane & Corn plastic that are 100% renewable & compostable!
Corporate Social Responsibility
Restaurant Associates is dedicated to being on the forefront of sustainability as well as social and environmental responsibility. RA is acutely aware that our thoughts and actions directly impact not only our customers, but a much larger community. Because of this, RA has taken steps to continually improve how we run our business, serve our guests, and preserve our natural resources.
Organic Food: A large part of organic agriculture involves the health of the soil and of the ecosystems in which crops and livestock are raised. A healthy environment significantly benefits crops and the health of those consuming them.
Local Food: Restaurant Associates is working with local farmers and produce distributors to provide our guests with the freshest seasonal foods while supporting our local communities. Items are identified as local if they are from sources that are no more than 150 miles from the location in which it is served. As a result, local food means fewer food miles and a dramatic reduction in transportation, days of refrigeration, and tons of pollution and packaging.
Sustainable Seafood: The world’s stock of wild seafood is threatened with extinction due to over and uncontrolled fishing. Compass Group, Restaurant Associates’ parent company, began a policy on March 1, 2006, replacing Atlantic cod, a species which leading conservationists have recommended consumers avoid, with more environmentally sound Pacific cod, Pollock and other alternatives. RA also plans to seek ways to decrease its use of shrimp and salmon that are farmed in an unsustainable manner. These two species are extremely popular with consumers but are a concern to environmentalists.
RA and Compass Group rely on the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch Program which empowers seafood consumers and business to make choices for healthy oceans. For more information, visit www.seafoodwatch.org.
Zero Trans-Fat: Restaurant Associates is committed to providing healthy menu items. In response to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the American Medical Association’s recommendations to minimize trans-fat consumption, RA transitioned to non-hydrogenated, zero trans-fat oils for both cooking and frying. RA is also making a commitment to eliminate trans-fats in our purchased goods, resulting in a massive reformulation effort by manufacturers and producers which will make many more trans-fat free snacks and baked goods available in the near future.
Fair Trade Coffee: Fair Trade empowers farmers and farm workers to lift themselves out of poverty by developing the business skills necessary to compete in the global marketplace. By guaranteeing minimum floor prices and social premiums, Fair Trade enables producers to invest in their farms and communities and protect the environment.
Milk Produced Without Synthetic rBGH: Produced by dairy cows that have never received injections of synthetic bovine growth hormone.
Cage Free Shell Eggs: Cage free shell eggs means the hens have not been confined to a battery cage.
Wellness: Restaurant Associates understands that everyone’s nutritional needs are different, so we created Balanced Choices® for a Healthy Lifestyle to help you make your own personal healthy choices throughout the day. By highlighting the best sources of proteins, calcium, fiber and Vitamin C, the Balanced Choices® program provides education and helps promote wise food choices that will produce a balanced diet leading to overall wellness.
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