Request for Proposal: Values Based Food Procurement Consultant

Deadline for Application: January 20, 2026 and must be submitted to contracts@hcwh.org

Inquiries: Betsy Skoda at bskoda@hcwh.org

Term of Project: January 2026 – October 2026

Location: Virtual

Organization Description

Health Care Without Harm seeks to transform health care worldwide so the sector reduces its environmental footprint and becomes a community anchor for sustainability and leader in the global movement for environmental health and justice. Working closely with Health Care Without Harm, Practice Greenhealth is the leading sustainable health care organization, delivering environmental solutions to more than 1,700 hospitals and health systems in the United States and Canada.

Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) and Practice Greenhealth are committed to seeking and sustaining culturally and ethnically diverse organizations, and to the principles that promote inclusive practices. We are dedicated to not only building a diverse staff, but also a diverse set of consultants and partners with expertise and interest in serving the mission of the organizations in respectful ways. Health Care Without Harm believes that our work can only be transformed when a diversity of voices, perspectives, and lived experiences are a part of the movement for change. We strongly encourage consultants and organizations that represent BIPOC and LGBTQ communities to apply.

Project Description 

Health Care Without Harm invites proposals from qualified communications and food systems professionals to guide development of a food procurement commitment, strategy, and related resources to guide health care systems and hospitals to align their food purchasing and programs with the Healthy Food in Health Care Standard. We envision a food procurement commitment will provide healthcare with a framework to target, measure, and improve their food procurement practices in line with prioritized values (local, equitable, sustainable). 

Objective

Create food procurement pledge to drive hospital progress on values-based food procurement and food associated greenhouse gas emission reduction

Background

Why a pledge/commitment?

Health Care Without Harm/Practice Greenhealth has successfully used pledges to engage health care systems/hospitals in activities designed to mitigate the environmental impact of their operations. Examples include:

• Coolfood Pledge 
• Health Care Anchor Network 

In addition, Health Care Without Harm is in the process of launching an initiative to bring the U.S. Food Waste Pact to the healthcare sector.

The Healthy Food in Health Care Pledge , created in 2005, served to influence hospital efforts to improve patient, community, and environmental health by offering healthy food, committing to local and sustainable food procurement, reducing waste, and reporting results to Health Care Without Harm. This pledge was sunset in 2021.

In 2023, Health Care Without Harm released an updated Healthy Food in Health Care Standard to guide hospital food procurement to align with a set of values: environmental sustainability, community health & nutrition, local economies, valued workforce, and animal welfare. Health Care Without Harm devised the updated standard based on our collaboration with the Center for Good Food Purchasing and Real Food Challenge as part of the Anchors in Action Alliance Our collaboration aligned criteria, definitions, and strategies for values-based food procurement standards that extend across sectors (K-12, health care, university) by creating a framework for values based purchasing.

Overarching Goal

Design a health care food procurement pledge and implementation guidance that:

• Lays out a simple, straightforward path for procurement progress.
• Takes into account market availability for products that meet HFHC standard.
• Sets a measurable goal(s) for individual facilities to pursue and steps or levels of achievement over time, toward the goal
• Integrates messaging around collective impact of participation
• Complements Coolfood Pledge and U.S. Food Waste Pact commitments 
• Aligns with and/or considers the approaches of Anchors in Alliance partners to enable cross network supply chain advocacy and action

Timeline

• Pledge design: January - October 2026

Specific Activities

Research

1. Review communications plan and conduct research (qualitative, quantitative) focused on impact purchasing frameworks and commitments to understand:

• What is the framework?
• What are strengths and weaknesses of different frameworks?
• What marketing tactics, messaging, targets, and data collection tools are used?

This review may include but not be limited to: Good Food Purchasing Program, Coolfood Pledge, US Food Waste Pact, Meatless Mondays, ChooseVeg, Real Food Challenge. 

Analysis should consider strengths and weaknesses of different approaches, unique characteristics of health care food service and procurement practices, and social, political, and economic considerations that could influence procurement changes.

• Conduct interviews or focus groups with hospitals and other pertinent stakeholders (e.g producers, food service management companies) to understand their needs, wants, and interests in a procurement commitment and what resources would support their progress. 
• Conduct research with aligned producers and supply chain entities to understand the challenges and opportunities related to product availability and market access.
• Conduct analyses (for example: SWOT, PESTEL) to identify internal and external factors (opportunities, challenges, gaps) that should be considered for internal decision making processes related to communications and resource development.
• Research messaging and marketing approaches used by supply chain entities to identify effective strategies and gaps.
• Make recommendations for the types of resources and messages needed to support pledge implementation. 
• Compile list of recommended publications, thought leaders, podcasts, and other communications channels or outlets relevant to key audiences that should be included in communications implementation.

Design: 

• Use summary/findings to create 1-3 concepts for a health care food procurement pledge 

Concept should include:

1. Specific goals, measures, actions (e.g. Food Waste Pact-target, measure, act; Coolfood-pledge, plan, promote)
2. Recommendations on guidance and materials to support hospital participation

• Present concepts to Health Care Without Harm and select stakeholders and co- lead the selection process with Health Care Without Harm staff.
• Revise selected concept based on feedback from the stakeholder meeting (up to two rounds of revisions)
• Final pledge concept and pitch deck, including recommendations for timeline and process for launch, including recruitment and orientation activities.

Deliverables

1. Monthly status report.
2. Interview and/or focus group questions and guides.
3. Summary of research findings, including recommendations for pledge( design and implementation strategy) and communications strategy, including strategic analysis (SWOT or PESTLE) with different value propositions for different audiences.
4. 1-3 Pledge concepts with specific goals, measures, actions and recommendations on guidance to support participation.
5. Presentation to stakeholders (HCWH staff, advisors)
6. Revised final pledge concept and recommendations for pledge launch, timeline and process (e.g. recruitment and orientation activities) and pitch deck.
7. Regular meetings with Health Care Without Harm staff (weekly or bi-weekly)
8. Creative brief based on research, with recommendations for marketing and promotion activities and recommended channels, frequency of communications, and KPIs.

Note: All deliverables should be shared in editable format. 

Reporting & Check-Ins

This will include a series of virtual check-in calls including but not limited to: 

• Orientation to the project and work done to date
• Discussing approach to project
• Check-in call
• Final deliverable review call

Process, Timeline, and Budget

The consultant will work with a core team from Health Care Without Harm to complete the project by September 30, 2026. 

The allocated budget for the project is $30,000- $40,000. Note, other expenses such as creative assets that may need to be purchased will be covered by Health Care Without Harm separately and will be discussed prior to any purchases.  

Qualifications

The ideal consultant will have the following qualifications:

1. Qualitative and quantitative research, data collection and analysis, data visualization (e.g.Tableau), SWOT/PESTLE analysis, project management, strategic communications development.
2. Understand audience analysis, user experience, and user interface and human centered design principles.
3. Ability to effectively communicate design concepts and strategies to non-designers and stakeholders.
4. Have an eye for detail to ensure high-quality, error-free design work and a proven ability to carry a project from concept to completion.
5. Experience collaborating across different sectors, and/or workstyles.
6. Experience within food systems, institutional clients and/or food producers preferred.
7. Experience working on communications materials for diverse cultures and audiences utilizing a DEIBJ lens.

Submission Guidelines

Please submit your proposal no later than January 20, 2026 to contracts@hcwh.org. Your submission must include:

1. Names and curriculum vitae of individuals who will be involved in completing the services.
2. Qualifications – why and how you are best-suited to meet the deliverables. This should include an explanation of your qualifications for this work, past examples of similar work (including a list of former clients for similar services if able), and qualifications of key personnel who will be involved. Please include any relevant licenses, certifications, etc.
3. A completed conflict of interest form.
4. A written declaration that you can agree to the general terms and conditions included in this RFP.
5. Health Care Without Harm supports positive efforts to utilize small businesses, minority-owned firms, women’s business enterprises, and Labor Surplus Area firms. [Also, since HCWH is a US-based organization working globally, we also encourage vendors from other countries to apply (especially from the Global South).] Please indicate whether or not you fall within one or more of these categories.
6. A proposed methodology and timeline for how you plan to meet the deliverables, with documentation of the development process, milestones, assumptions and expectations of HCWH staff.
7. A cost breakdown of this work, including a list of any staff that would be assigned to the project, their roles, and any subcontractors you plan to employ.
8. A timeframe of validity of your proposal (must be at least 60 days).

Criteria for the Assessment of Proposal 

• The expertise of the proposal and experience of the organization or consultant and key personnel indicated in the proposal.
• Methodology, its appropriateness to the conditions and timeline set forth in the RFP.
• Financial considerations.
• HCWH is not willing to award the contract to more than one service provider.

Inquiries

Inquiries can be made to Betsy Skoda at bskoda@hcwh.org. 

General Terms and Conditions for Bidders

Other terms and conditions will be included in an awarded contract

1. Contracts shall be made only with responsible contractors who possess the potential ability to perform successfully under the terms and conditions of the proposed procurement. Consideration shall be given to such matters as contractor integrity, record of past performance, financial and technical resources or accessibility to other necessary resources. In certain      circumstances, contracts with certain parties are restricted by agencies' implementation of United States Executive Orders 12549 and 12689, “Debarment and Suspension.”

2. Awards shall be made to the bidder or the offeror whose bid or offer is responsive to the solicitation and is most advantageous to the recipient, price, quality and other factors considered.  Solicitations shall clearly set forth all requirements that the bidder or the offeror shall fulfill in order for the bid or offer to be evaluated by the recipient.  Any and all bids or offers may be rejected when it is in Health Care Without Harm’s interest to do so.

3. Health Care Without Harm suppliers and contractors must demonstrate compliance with the following ethical principles. Any breach of these provisions shall disqualify the supplier or entitle Health Care Without Harm to terminate any agreements with the supplier immediately upon notice without any liability for the termination or any other liability of any kind.

a. Contractors shall not directly or indirectly provide material support or resources, including financial support, in-kind support, technical or organizational assistance, or any other form of support or service, to individuals that are terrorists, that are associated with acts of terrorism, or that pose a significant risk of committing acts of terrorism.

b. Contractors must comply with all applicable anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws in the countries where it does business. Additionally, contractors understand and agree to comply with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, as revised, which generally prohibits the offer, promise, payment or giving of anything of value either directly or indirectly to any government official for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business or any improper advantage. 

c. Contractors shall not engage in any practice inconsistent with the rights set forth in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, including Article 32 thereof, which, inter alia, requires that a child shall be protected from performing any work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere with the child’s education, or to be harmful to the child’s health or physical mental, spiritual, moral or social development. Additionally, Contractor warrants that the Contractor is not engaged in the sale or manufacture of anti-personnel mines or components utilized in the manufacture of anti-personnel mines.

d. Health Care Without Harm takes all appropriate measures to prevent sexual exploitation or abuse of anyone through its work. For these purposes, sexual activity with any person less than eighteen years of age, regardless of any laws relating to consent, shall constitute sexual exploitation and abuse of such person. In addition, contractors shall refrain from exchanging any money, goods, services, or other things of value for sexual favors or activities, or from engaging in any sexual activities that are exploitative or degrading to any person.

e. Contractors are expected to disclose to Health Care Without Harm any situation that may appear as a conflict of interest, and disclose to Health Care Without Harm if anyone under contract with Health Care Without Harm may have an interest of any kind in the contractor's business or any kind of economic ties between contractor and Health Care Without Harm.

f. Health Care Without Harm will fully enforce applicable laws prohibiting harassment and discrimination by or against contractors, including harassment, and/or discrimination because of race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, gender, age, or other status protected by applicable law, and to maintain a business relationship free of any such harassment and discrimination. Harassment may take many forms, including but not limited to:

1. Verbal conduct such as epithets, derogatory comments, slurs or unwanted sexual advances, invitations, innuendo, or comments
2. Visual conduct such as derogatory posters, cartoons, drawings or gestures
3. Physical conduct such as assault, blocking normal movement or interference with work because of sex or another protected basis    

4. Health Care Without Harm supports positive efforts to utilize small businesses, minority owned firms, and women’s business enterprises and Labor Surplus Area firms. 

a. Health Care Without Harm encourages contracts with consortiums of firms referenced above when a contract is too large for one of those firms to handle individually.

5. Contractor agrees to the acceptance, to the extent practicable and economically feasible, of products and services dimensioned in the metric system of measurement.

6. Health Care Without Harm requires, when practicable and economically feasible, for products and services that conserve natural resources and protect the environment and are energy efficient.