Food and Nutrition Services used this proposal to request additional funds to replace all of the poultry and pork served to patients at University of Washington Medical Center and to customers of the Plaza Café with products that were raised without the use of antibiotics.

Antibiotic resistance is now a significant concern in healthcare. This threat is increasing because of the widespread use of antibiotics, much of which is given needlessly and non-therapeutically to animals intended for food. As a department in our leading academic medical center, Food and Nutrition would like to take the lead in reducing overall antibiotic use by choosing food raised without the use of antibiotics.

The University of Washington Medical Center Food and Nutrition Services is well-positioned to make this change as our award-winning Wellness Program has already taken substantial steps to improve and promote health and sustainability of the menus offered through our Room Service Dining program and in the Plaza Café. Serving our community antibiotic-free poultry and pork is a high priority change that we will be able to undertake with some additional funding to our food budget.