If you’ve ever had a family member or friend who has battled cancer, you know that treatment processes are emotionally and physically draining. The side effects to chemotherapy treatment can be daunting, from fatigue to body aches and more, patients are often left feeling depleted, exhausted and in need of a serious nutritional boost.
Decatur's market Sawicki's Meat, Seafood and More has teamed up with Springer Mountain Farms to create the Harvest 4 Health Program, which provides made-to-order meals for patients undergoing cancer treatments. The program launched in February of this year, after Sawicki's private clients were frequently visiting the store and requesting specific diets while they were getting treatment. These clients wanted to eat well and clean, but found they lost the energy and the will to shop and cook cleanly. Sawicki's is also a drop off point for CSA's – so the combined ideas created an efficient way to help the clients.
Harvest 4 Health was created by chef Lynne Sawicki, who opened Sawicki's eight years ago. Before opening the store, Sawicki worked for Anne Quatrano and Clifford Harrison at Floataway Cafe, Bacchanalia and Star Provisions. She gained a wealth of knowledge from Quatrano and Harrison about showcasing local ingredients and keeping their nutritional values as well as flavors.
With Harvest 4 Health, Sawicki has teamed up with dieticians and doctors at the Winship Cancer Institute at Emory University to build healthy meals from local ingredients. In addition to their consultations, Sawicki has conducted extensive research on super foods that aid in cancer treatment and recovery. Many of the farmers and foragers that Sawicki met during her tenure with Quatrano and Harrison are used in the Harvest 4 Health meals. In addition to Springer Mountain Farms' chicken, Sawicki utilizes Riverview Farms and White Oak Pastures, for locally grown ingredients that contain no chemicals or allergens.
Customers can place orders online any time before 5 p.m., and pick-up their meals the next day at Sawicki’s or at the Winship Cancer Institute, where you’re given a special access code to pick up your meal directly after treatment from the Harvest 4 Health refrigerator.
From now until April 15, buy one of the five Harvest 4 Health meals that features Springer Mountain Farms chicken and you'll get one free. Meals include Thai ginger chicken, chickpea miso glazed chicken, tagine chicken, a whole baked chicken and a whole roasted chicken dinner. Throughout the season, vegetables will rotate as they become available locally.
The Harvest 4 Health program is available for anyone who wants to eat healthy, nutrition-packed meals. For those who don’t have time to cook, this is an easy option: the meals are fully cooked, so all you’ll need to do is reheat.
Credit: Alexa Lampasona
Credit: Alexa Lampasona
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