The U.S. Navy has announced a new pilot program that will seek to provide sailors with healthier culinary options and more avenues to use their meal entitlements.
The service is launching its shore food service transformation initiative at Naval Construction Battalion Center Gulfport, Mississippi, and Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, Washington, with the goal of expanding its reach to other installations if the implementation proves successful.
“By providing our sailors with high-quality, nutritious food and top-tier wellness resources, we are directly investing in their physical and mental resilience,” said Vice Adm. Scott Gray, commander of Navy Installations Command. “A well-supported, healthy, and focused sailor is a more lethal warfighter, and these pilot programs are a critical step toward ensuring our force is always ready to meet any challenge.”
The Navy is commencing the shore food service initiative at NCBC Gulfport on May 29, offering sailors “rotating ethnic food stations,” and at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor on June 3, allowing sailors to use meal entitlements at galleys and Morale, Welfare, and Recreation affiliated restaurants.
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The service also launched its Human Performance Optimization pilot program at Naval Base San Diego on Feb. 2.
Through the program, sailors gain access to experts, dietitians and cognitive specialists that provide individualized sessions and classes that teach them about nutrition, sleep, injury recovery and stress management.
The Navy has continued to try and work on its dining experience, rolling out its own version of the military-wide Go for Green nutrition program in 2016, which helps service members identify healthier food options through color coding that ranks the level of nutrition.
Riley Ceder is a reporter at Military Times, where he covers breaking news, criminal justice, investigations, and cyber. He previously worked as an investigative practicum student at The Washington Post, where he contributed to the Abused by the Badge investigation.