The Food Is Medicine movement is growing in Colorado. When the first annual Colorado Food Is Medicine Summit convened in 2023, about 200 experts, community leaders, and representatives from health organizations gathered.
When Kaiser Permanente and Project Angel Heart co-hosted the summit again in 2026, the event bloomed to more than 300 attendees.
“To transform the way we treat and prevent diet-related disease and hunger, it takes a village,” said Pam Schwartz, executive director of Community Health at Kaiser Permanente. “We really need partnerships at all levels to be able to make a dent on transforming diet-related disease.”
Each part of the event focused on a different aspect of running and growing Food Is Medicine programs, but they all focused on a common question: How can these organizations better collaborate?
“This is an opportunity for people to come together and come to consensus,” said Marti Macchi, president and CEO of Project Angel Heart. “How do we continue to move this forward and really develop a strong system for the chronically ill and using nutrition as a treatment?”
Food Is Medicine leaders from Colorado and around the country spoke in 8 panel sessions. Attendees also brainstormed in roundtable discussions over lunch.
