What started as a small experiment with 10 food boxes in Pensacola has evolved into a nationally recognized Food as Medicine program, illustrating how grassroots initiatives can drive systemic healthcare change.
- Attorney Peter Mougey’s four-year journey offers valuable lessons as the food as medicine market explodes toward a projected $36.6 billion nationwide by 2034.
Starting Small, Thinking Big
“We started really small, and the thought was, we can make mistakes quietly,” explains Mougey, whose firm Levin Papantonio has raised over $1 million for their comprehensive nutrition program. “So we started with 10 boxes and we thought, you know what? Let’s fail quietly and build.”
That cautious approach has paid dividends. Today, the program feeds approximately 600 children weekly at 16 schools in Escambia County—where nearly 80% of students qualify for free or reduced lunches—and provides fresh produce boxes to about 250 adults per week through four local health clinics.
The Pensacola program stands out for its educational component. Working with Ascension Sacred Heart, Baptist Hospital, Community Health Northwest Florida and Manna Food Pantries, the initiative combines food provision with nutrition education and health monitoring.
- “It’s not just giving people fish, but it’s teaching them how to fish,” Mougey emphasizes. The program has been collecting data demonstrating reduced emergency room visits and improved management of diabetes and hypertension through targeted nutrition interventions.
National Recognition and Expansion
The local success hasn’t gone unnoticed. Tufts University selected Pensacola’s program to represent Northern Florida in a national coalition advancing Food as Medicine initiatives.
“We’ve been invited under Tufts to represent the Northern Florida region,” Mougey announced recently. “We’re going to join this coalition of cities and counties and we’re going to represent and try to push this through our local community.”
Mougey’s timing aligns perfectly with unprecedented national momentum. Feeding America recently announced a $14.1 million investment to expand Food as Medicine programs, while the American Heart Association awarded $7.8 million in research grants. Representative Barbara Lee introduced the first comprehensive federal Food as Medicine legislation.
The convergence of local innovation and national investment suggests that programs like Mougey’s aren’t just community success stories—they’re blueprints for transforming healthcare delivery nationwide through the power of nutrition.
