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Hydroponic butterhead lettuce is on the regular menu rotation at Doylestown Hospital (Doylestown Hospital).
“People love the yogurt from Lancaster, Penn. – it’s a staff favorite!” says Rob Raichle, the Sodexo General Manager. Other popular retail items include apple cider, sliced apple snack bags, and seasonal fruits.
Raichle is excited to buy local knowing that it’s a priority for the client and that as a hospital, their purchasing power makes a difference to smaller, nearby growers. “The Common Market provides that connection to make it all possible,” he says.
Doylestown Hospital, the flagship of Doylestown Health, is an independent, community-based facility nestled in eastern Pennsylvania’s abundant farmland. The hospital values its local businesses and has supported Sodexo’s efforts to source local food for their cafeteria. Since 2017, Sodexo has been utilizing The Common Market to access the abundance of local agricultural products the Mid-Atlantic region has to offer.
As a nonprofit, The Common Market connects institutions with source-identified, local foods. Currently operating in three regions – the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, and Texas – all foods are sourced from within 250 miles of each hub so the food remains completely local and traceable. Its Philadelphia location was the first food hub in the country to receive Safe Quality Food Institute (SFQ), Level 2 certification – a globally benchmarked food safety standard. The Common Market will be opening an additional warehouse in Jessup, Maryland this summer.
Doylestown Hospital purchases a variety of products including chicken raised without antibiotics, turkey, and beef in addition to fresh, seasonal vegetables. The Certified Humane turkey is used in their “Mindful” recipes – a Sodexo initiative to promote transparency of ingredients and nutrition education. Additionally, they purchase Certified Humane eggs for their grill station, providing made-to-order, local omelets each morning.
Through their partnership with The Common Market, Sodexo staff use point-of-sale marketing to promote the name and location of each farm, creating an awareness of the growers’ stories and production methods, and enabling visitors to connect with the source of their food and building a sense of community.
The Common Market Mid-Atlantic serves institutions, retailers and restaurants from New York City to Washington through its wholesale and farm share programs.