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National Guard exploring healthier food options

Some National Guard troops could soon have healthier food options. 

Erin Meyer, executive director of Basil’s Harvest, a Chicago-based non-profit, says the National Guard is encouraging a more wholistic approach to soldier health.

“Physical health, mental health, spiritual health and nutritional health.”  She says, “And so they have an initiative called ‘Go for the Green,’ which is encouraging food service to order more whole or minimally processed foods that are more nutrient dense.”

She tells Brownfield their group is working with Illinois and Minnesota-based units to form a regional supply chain with producers.

“We proposed that we start talking with regional growers, processors, aggregators, food hubs to say, what does this look like?”  She says, “What are you growing? How can we get this food into the National Guard?”

Meyer says the organization is currently surveying growers in the two states with plans for a pilot program to be providing locally grown foods to soldiers in 2026.

Brownfield spoke with Meyer at the 2025 Organic Grains Conference in Champaign, Illinois.

AUDIO: Erin Meyer – Basil’s Harvest