While a healthy diet has always been considered necessary for overall wellness, historically, many hospitals have overlooked its powerful potential for healing. In some areas, that’s beginning to change. In Pennsylvania four years ago, St. Luke’s Hospital partnered with Rodale Institute to start an organic produce farm at the hospital’s campus in Easton. Since its first season, the St. Luke’s farm has expanded to grow 100 fruit and vegetable breed on 11 acres.
Hospital farms are part of broader movement to make organic, locally produced food accessible to the general population. Some hospitals are making it a priority to source food from nearby farms, while others are turning deserted land on their grounds into community gardens. By making organic produce easily accessible to the patients and visitors alike, these hospitals hope to inspire lifelong changes for better health. Even though most hospital farms aren’t growing enough to completely supply their staff and patient food needs, providing even a small amount of fresh produce makes an educational statement about how healthy and delicious a plant-rich diet can be.
While the movement continues to gain attraction, it’s encountering some challenges along the way. For example, health workers don’t necessarily know how to grow food. This means that most hospitals need to hire a full-time farmer and other farm labor to manage the property, which can be expensive. It takes between 3 and 5 years for most hospital farms to break even, much less save money on food costs. Nonetheless, participating hospitals believe that the benefits are worthwhile. As the movement continues to expand, you might soon experience a farm-fresh meal at a hospital near you.
【小题1】What change is taking place in St. Luke’s hospital according to Paragraph 1?
| A．Expanding the planting area of organic food. |
| B．Understanding better the role of a healthy diet. |
| C．Starting an organic farm at the hospital alone. |
| D．Neglecting the healing power of organic produce. |
【小题2】How do hospital farms make organic food more available to the public?
| A．By inspiring staff to grow more. | B．By growing food in nearby farms. |
| C．By purchasing more land as farms. | D．By gardening on the deserted land. |
【小题3】What is the challenge of the movement?
| A．The rising cost of foods. | B．The inefficient management. |
| C．The public less-open attitude. | D．The lack of workforce with planting skills. |
【小题4】What do the hospitals involved think of the movement?
| A．Doubtful. | B．Optimistic. | C．Critical. | D．Passive. |
