Worksites join six restaurants and a grocer as Blue Zones Project Approved
FORT WORTH, Texas (July 9, 2015) – Two local employers have been named Fort Worth’s first Blue Zones Project Approved™ worksites, joining a list of other approved organizations that include six restaurants and a grocer as Blue Zones Project® begins to gain momentum in Fort Worth.
Higginbotham, a leading independent insurance firm in Texas, and Tarrant Area Food Bank (TAFB) earned the designation by completing the Blue Zones Project Worksites Pledge™, and adopting a selection of best practices from a menu of 46 options. Blue Zones Project is a community-led well-being improvement initiative aimed at making healthier choices easier for people who live, work and play in Fort Worth.
Higginbotham is one of the largest independent insurance brokerage firms in the U.S. and employs 650 individuals in Fort Worth and throughout the state. The company has been honored as one of the Best Places to Work by Business Insurance magazine and Best Companies to Work for in Texas by Texas Monthly.
To earn the Blue Zones Project designation, Higginbotham established an employee-led well-being advisory committee, held a workshop to help employees connect with their personal purposes and established a formal policy to support employee volunteer activities. In addition, the firm established employee walking routes on campus and designated a quiet space where employees can downshift. The company also provides annual on-site biometric screenings and health risk assessments, and employees have access to tobacco cessation, nutrition coaching and weight management programs.
“Blue Zones Project is an important partner in helping Fort Worth create a healthier community and we are excited to play a leadership role in this initiative,” said Rusty Reid, Higginbotham president and CEO. “The well-being of our employees is a top priority, and we hope we can set a good example for our clients and other area businesses.”
For its part, TAFB, which has had an employee wellness program in place for more than 10 years, implemented healthy vending machines so that staff and volunteers have access to nutritious snacks at subsidized prices, promotes a walking group on the Trinity Trail behind its facility and conducts quarterly wellness challenges focused on eating healthy, staying active and reducing stress. TAFB also hosts an annual staff health fair featuring on-site biometric and vision screenings.
TAFB is the primary source of donated food for hunger-relief charities and feeding programs in 13 North Texas counties and employs 100 people. Since 1981, TAFB has distributed more than 340 million pounds of food and household products to 300 partner charities.
To date, six area restaurants, Juice Junkies, Righteous Foods, La Perla Negra, Grand Cru, HoYA Korean Kitchen and Z’s Café, and one grocer, Central Market, have been recognized as Blue Zones Project Approved. More than 20 worksites are currently working toward approval.
As a Blue Zones Project Demonstration Site, Fort Worth is working in six key areas – worksites, schools, grocery stores, restaurants, individuals and community policy – to implement environmental changes that improve well-being. Once city-specific goals are met, Fort Worth will be certified as a Blue Zones Community®.
Higginbotham, a leading independent insurance firm in Texas, and Tarrant Area Food Bank (TAFB) earned the designation by completing the Blue Zones Project Worksites Pledge™, and adopting a selection of best practices from a menu of 46 options. Blue Zones Project is a community-led well-being improvement initiative aimed at making healthier choices easier for people who live, work and play in Fort Worth.
Higginbotham is one of the largest independent insurance brokerage firms in the U.S. and employs 650 individuals in Fort Worth and throughout the state. The company has been honored as one of the Best Places to Work by Business Insurance magazine and Best Companies to Work for in Texas by Texas Monthly.
To earn the Blue Zones Project designation, Higginbotham established an employee-led well-being advisory committee, held a workshop to help employees connect with their personal purposes and established a formal policy to support employee volunteer activities. In addition, the firm established employee walking routes on campus and designated a quiet space where employees can downshift. The company also provides annual on-site biometric screenings and health risk assessments, and employees have access to tobacco cessation, nutrition coaching and weight management programs.
“Blue Zones Project is an important partner in helping Fort Worth create a healthier community and we are excited to play a leadership role in this initiative,” said Rusty Reid, Higginbotham president and CEO. “The well-being of our employees is a top priority, and we hope we can set a good example for our clients and other area businesses.”
For its part, TAFB, which has had an employee wellness program in place for more than 10 years, implemented healthy vending machines so that staff and volunteers have access to nutritious snacks at subsidized prices, promotes a walking group on the Trinity Trail behind its facility and conducts quarterly wellness challenges focused on eating healthy, staying active and reducing stress. TAFB also hosts an annual staff health fair featuring on-site biometric and vision screenings.
TAFB is the primary source of donated food for hunger-relief charities and feeding programs in 13 North Texas counties and employs 100 people. Since 1981, TAFB has distributed more than 340 million pounds of food and household products to 300 partner charities.
To date, six area restaurants, Juice Junkies, Righteous Foods, La Perla Negra, Grand Cru, HoYA Korean Kitchen and Z’s Café, and one grocer, Central Market, have been recognized as Blue Zones Project Approved. More than 20 worksites are currently working toward approval.
As a Blue Zones Project Demonstration Site, Fort Worth is working in six key areas – worksites, schools, grocery stores, restaurants, individuals and community policy – to implement environmental changes that improve well-being. Once city-specific goals are met, Fort Worth will be certified as a Blue Zones Community®.
About Blue Zones®
Blue Zones employs evidence-based ways to help people live longer, better. The Company's work is rooted in the New York Times best-selling books, The Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World’s Healthiest People, The Blue Zones and Thrive—all published by National Geographic books. Since 2009, Blue Zones has applied the tenets of the books to communities and corporations across the U.S. and has successfully raised life expectancy and lowered health care costs while bringing down smoking and obesity rates. Blue Zones takes a systematic, environmental approach to well-being, which focuses on optimizing policy, building design, social networks, and the built environment. The Blue Zones Project is based on this innovative approach. For more information, visit www.bluezones.com.
About Healthways
Healthways (NASDAQ: HWAY) is the largest independent global provider of well-being improvement solutions. Dedicated to creating a healthier world one person at a time, the Company uses the science of behavior change to produce and measure positive change in well-being for our customers, which include employers, integrated health systems, hospitals, physicians, health plans, communities and government entities. We provide highly specific and personalized support for each individual and their team of experts to optimize each participant’s health and productivity and to reduce health-related costs. Results are achieved by addressing longitudinal health risks and care needs of everyone in a given population. The Company has scaled its proprietary technology infrastructure and delivery capabilities developed over 30 years and now serves approximately 68 million people on four continents. Learn more at www.healthways.com.