[Portland Press Herald] Health care workers talk about how the food on our plates can help combat climate change.

Later this month, a group of Maine health professionals will gather for a meat- and dairy-free feast. On the menu? Everything from alternative proteins to vegan wine and beer.

But these doctors and nurses are not pushing a prescription for losing weight or lowering cholesterol, although those benefits could be byproducts of following such a diet. They are concerned with the health of the planet.

The Maine chapter of the nonprofit Physicians for Social Responsibility is joining other health care professionals around the world in focusing its attention on the public health risks of climate change. Rather than talk about the spread of mosquito-borne viruses or the impact of giant hurricanes, the group is using food as a way to engage the public in a difficult discussion about a complicated topic.

Similarly, Health Care Without Harm, a broad nonprofit coalition of health care workers, has already tackled the transformation of hospital menus (including some in Maine hospitals), in an effort to make them more healthful and more locally sourced. The group is now trying to expand the conversation around climate and food through its “Climate-Healthy Menu” program, a partnership with the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future. The program targets food service companies, urging them to offer less red meat and more produce and legumes to their customers – be they hospitals, businesses or colleges and universities. The idea is that if people make better food choices, it will not only benefit their health, but the planet as well...(Continue reading).