3rd Annual Florida Food is Medicine Symposium 2025

 8:00 am 

Welcome! Doors open, Registration, Materials & Handouts.

8:00 am - 8:30 am 

BREAKFAST SPONSOR: Sifter Solutions 

Network and enjoy healthy breakfast and  fresh coffee or tea.

Get the Healthy Food Rx Shopping Companion for Florida Food is Medicine programs and clients, thanks to Sponsor Sifter Solutions. 

@ https://healthyfoodrx.sifter.shop/

8:30 am - 8:45 am   

Welcome from  Pierre Monice, CEO of Holy Cross Health, 

Mayor Tim Lonergan, City of Oakland Park, 

Michael Farver, CEO, South Florida Hunger Coalition 

8:45 am - 9:05 am

Welcome, Housekeeping & Your Why by Co-Hosts: Maura Plante, Florida Health & Nutrition Coalition & Kim Saiswick, Holy Cross Health

9:05 am - 9:20 am   

Welcome by Alachua County Commissioner Anna Prizzia

9:20 am - 10:00 am   

Florida Keynote:  Holly Freishtat is the Senior Director of Feeding Change at the Milken Institute and leads the food systems portfolio. She is an experienced director, transformative leader, and strategist with a 20-year track record developing and implementing food system policies and programs.  

VIEW THE PRESENTATION SLIDES HERE>> 

10:00 am - 10:30 am   

Keynote: Dr. Dariush  (Dary)  Mozaffarian, MD DrPH, Cardiologist, Director, Tufts Food is Medicine Institute. Former President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition.    

10:30 am - 11:00 am   

Holly Freishtat, Senior Director, Feeding Change, Milken Institute hosts the Panel of Co-Chairs from 8 Regional Networks of Excellence. 

11:00 am -11:10 am Networking Break

11:05 am -11:45 am

Scott Darius, Florida Voices for Health is back as Host by popular demand. 

Brent Ling -  the National Produce Prescriptions Collaborative (NPPC), Erika Hanson - Center for Health Law Policy and Innovation at Harvard Law School, (CHLPI), Alissa Wassung - Food is Medicine Coalition (FIMC),  Emily Callahan- Food is Medicine Institute (FIMI) Tufts University, and Lorena Hardwick  - Feeding Tampa, and Cindy Huddleston-FL Policy Institute, will discuss policy outlooks.   

11:45 am -12:25 pm   

Panel hosted by Dr. Kristi Messer, DHSc, LCSW, MPH, Assistant Dean of Bachelor Degree Programs, Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine, Associate Professor of Public Health.

Meet the 2025 FL FIM All Stars, hear their stories, & lively Q&A

1. Karen TwoShoes - Seminole Tribe of Florida
2. Nichole Dube - Access to Fresh
3. Dr. Angelica Parra - Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital
4. Peter Mougey & John Peacock - One Pensacola

12:25 pm-12:40 pm

Karen Joseph, American Culinary Medicine Institute + Maura Plante - Hear how the heart in culinary medicine & cooking affects brain, body and soul.  

12:40 pm - 1:30 pm  

You're invited to a sponsored healthy lunch by FareRx. 

SPONSOR: FareRx Founder Mike Canji speaks

VIDEO: US House Representative Deborah Wasserman Schultz Welcome.

12:40 pm - 1:30 pm

Tour the new Pleasantville Mobile Produce Prescriptions Clinic Bus  with Pastor Gerard Duncan, all the way from Gainesville, in partnership with UF Health, bringing food is medicine to the community.

1: 00 pm - 3:30 pm

Explore Culinary Medicine in a 2-hour masterclass in person live with a food demo in the new culinary kitchen. Enjoy a tasting menu for lunch at the Holy Cross Family Health Center. 

Max 20 Tickets |  Fee: $25 | SOLD OUT

1: 30 pm - 2:30 pm

Panel led by Ellen Brown, Healthcare Actually Founder, with a dynamic & lively panel discussion packed with your food solutions for FIM program providers, big wins, and exciting new turns up ahead.

Panelists: 

1. Sysco - Lucille Gutierrez, VP
2. Sifter - Andrew Parkinson, CEO
3. Morrisey Market - Emily Roach, VP
4. Big Green - Madeleine Nelson, President 

2: 30 pm - 3:30 pm

Professor Danielle D. Treadwell PhD from the Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida will share what is next generation science in horticulture for food is medicine from her recent published journal article titled: Food Rx: Integrating horticulture research to improve nutrition and health. Click here to view.

3: 30 pm - 3:35 pm

Florida House Representative Debra Tendrich, also Co-Founder of the Florida Health & Nutrition Coalition gives the closing remarks and lays out what's ahead for Food is Medicine in the Florida Legislature. 

Here is the link to the video on the Florida Food is Medicine Rumble Channel