SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The United States Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra toured and visited UC Davis Medical Center's production kitchen, Thursday.
The visit was to announce the launch of UC Davis' Health Workforce Initiative Food Program where they partner with local farms and agricultural organizations to provide fresh, locally grown food to patients and staff.
The goal of the program is to focus on food sustainability and eating locally. The executive chef wants to change the stigma on hospital food.
"It takes a phenomenal team of dieticians, nutritionists, culinary staff and food service workers to put on a program of this magnitude," said Santana Diaz, Director of Culinary Operations and Executive Chef at UC Davis Health. "We strive to have a great impact on our community so the way we source and procure food is very important, for the appropriate diets to the people that need it most."
Becerra says he's looking forward to seeing the success of the new food initiative program.
"We've got to change our system of healthcare," said Secretary Becerra. "It's time we move from the illness care system to a wellness care system where we talk about how you're keeping healthy and enjoying wellness."
As the Secretary of Health and Human Services, ABC10 also wanted to know Becerra's thoughts on another group of migrants being dropped off in California, this time from Texas.
"Many of these immigrants have gone through tough times," said Becerra. "We have laws that are there to protect those seeking asylum, trying to flee from persecution or potential death. I think we're going to do everything we can to make sure anyone in California has a place to sleep, good food to eat, and has an opportunity to excel the way I did."
He also traveled to Oakland to highlight the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to tackle food insecurity and increase investment in our nation’s healthcare workforce.
For more information about the Health Workforce Initiative Food Program, you can visit their website at www.HHS.gov.
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