Just what the doctor ordered: Brazil’s drive to ditch UPFs from hospital menus
Following the successful reduction of ultra-processed foods in schools, scientists and politicians hope to improve patient health with locally grown and freshly prepared meals
Every month a few dozen staff from some of São Paulo’s leading hospitals take time out of their busy schedules to visit food fairs where stallholders from more than 50 local farms display their produce. The aim is to strike deals that will supply the hospitals with organic vegetables, homemade bread and other locally made foods.
Started in October 2023, the fairs are part of a revolutionary scheme in São Paulo state to phase out ultra-processed foods (UPFs) from hospital menus in favour of healthier alternatives. “It’s not only cooks, nutritionists, meal planners and hospital management who attend the fairs but also nurses and doctors,” says Weruska Davi Barrios, a specialist in hospital nutrition at the University of São Paulo, the institution that has initiated the project.