What would corporate America look like if employees understood the implication of their daily food intake? What if companies could reduce the enormous healthcare costs by educating employees on small but meaningful changes in food choices and small changes in status quo? Gigi Carter’s book, The Plant-Based Workplace address these topics.

This book is eye-opening for anyone wondering why healthcare costs are not being addressed on some basic levels. For example, many companies are assisting with health club membership costs and adding incentives for non-smoking employees but little is being done on the diet and nutrition forefront. The diet is the essential variable in understanding overall health: if you have a poor diet, your overall health is likely poor. The link between chronic diseases (diabetes, obesity) and the Standard American Diet vs other greener diets (Plant Based, Mediterranean Diet, etc.) are fleshed out in this book. Gigi Carter offers practical approaches from the top down so this book is not a lofty ideal but a practical guide (actual meal plans for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks are provided in this book) for making the workplace healthier, more productive, more reliable, and reducing the bottom line of the astounding healthcare costs we have accepted as “the norm”.

It is time to open our eyes to the reality of poor food choices and the personal and professional effects that we have ignored for decades. For anyone ready to move the needle on the healthcare equation, this book will help initiate the discussion and ultimately change. Highly recommended.

Could better eating habits actually start at work? Gigi proposes a bold approach to solving a number of chronic health conditions we face in society today. The first half digs into the health issues we face today and the back of the book makes the business case for employers to make the shift to better living through a plant based approach. Lower costs and increase productivity with happier, healthier employees!

One line that stuck with me more than anything was “I feel better today than anything ever tasted” which is a true testament to the power of plants and a long healthspan.

“Gigi Carter provides a convincing argument with data that a plant-based diet in the workplace is not only the right thing to do from an employee health perspective… but also from the company’s bottom line perspective. This book is a blue print for any business leader…”

“I was pleasantly surprised to read this terrific book that I can endorse without hesitation. The Plant-Based Workplace is so well-written, scholarly and well-organized that makes it easy to read, informative and interesting. I think this is a critical, must-read work that can play a huge role in transforming lives and saving our planet. And, if you are a business executive or owner, you will be compelled to adopt some insightful advice to help your workforce and your bottom-line.”

“I believe The Plant-Based Workplace can be the basis of a successful and cost-effective program at any business and lead to a better workplace, a healthier workforce, and a more effective corporation. I am grateful that Ms. Carter put these important ideas into a book for all to consider and implement.”

“What a beautifully written and timely book. Drawing upon her personal health journey as well as her years in the corporate world, Gigi Carter has filled The Plant-Based Workplace with cogent analysis and practical action plans to help companies large and small use wiser nutrition choices to improve their employees’ health and their company’s bottom lines – and, oh yes, save Planet Earth from disaster at the same time.  Thank you, Gigi Carter, for shining this much needed light on the heretofore unexplored – yet essential – role the business world can play in solving our nation’s health and environmental challenges. After all, improving our health and healing our planet is everyone’s business, and The Plant-Based Workplace gives us the blueprint to accomplish both goals – so I can most highly recommend this insightful and well-written book.”

“Gigi Carter brings a powerful new voice to the healthy food movement. Her background in both corporate America and nutrition science enables her to present a practical and compelling roadmap for the business community to improve the health and productivity of their workers, lower healthcare costs, and contribute to a cleaner and more sustainable environment.”

“The Plant-Based Workplace is a must read!  Gigi Carter introduces a revolutionary, thoughtful, and progressive blueprint for businesses that will inspire organizational change, create healthier people, and regenerate the environment through sincere resource stewardship.  It is the true win-win-win scenario for every stakeholder and the future that we will leave to our children.”

It’s hard to NOT be aware that we are serious health issues in this country as evidenced by the multi-billion dollar diet industry promising miracle results. There is also a focus on interventions such as medications and often surgeries rather than figuring out what’s causing our illnesses in the first place. Enter Mrs. Carter’s terrific book on JUST this concept...prevention as opposed to intervention; pro-action rather than reaction. She has indeed done her homework and translates it into an extremely well-written guide to making changes that could save tons of money, prevent (or potentially reverse) some of our most prevalent health issues (obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension), and offer work place (corporate) changes to reinforce these changes. Since most folks are in the work force, it makes great sense to engage the employers (be they huge corporations or smaller ones) in assessing how healthy eating options can bring about healthier employees and ultimately reduce factors that impact employee performance. Each chapter builds on information provided to finally offer a step by step guide to establishing a plant-based work place. It can be done and it can work. Read this book and make a conscious effort to promote it to others...you never know what you may start!