I am proud to report that the Dairy Council of California has an award winning employee wellness program. The program is spearheaded by our wellness committee and each of our four offices has a wellness committee team leader. This team leader acts as our local cheerleader to promote the wellness activities. The committee generates a monthly newsletter that includes health suggestions, a healthy recipe and a move of the month, which I try to do a few times during the week to move more and sit less while working. Our office recently purchased a new exercise ball and some yoga bands and I used the ball and the bands while I was listening to a webinar. I really appreciate all of the support and encouragement that we get from our wellness team.

The most fun thing we have done recently is the Iron Chef Challenge. The challenge was to prepare a recipe that included yogurt as the 'secret ingredient' and bring in a sample for the office to try. We voted anonymously on which dish was the best and the winner received a gift basket.

We have a small office and it is hard to coordinate a date when everyone is available. In the end, we had four recipes entered and another staff member from the Sacramento office was visiting, so we had a total of four recipes and five testers.

Here is a picture of the entries

and here are the recipes:

Yummy Veggie Dip

Baklava Cake

Yogurt Lemon Dressing

Yogurt Parfait

I am proud to announce that my recipe, Yogurt Lemon Dressing, was the winner! I put the dressing on chopped cabbage for a light and tart coleslaw dressing. It was delicious. Here is a picture of my prize. 

Workplace wellness benefits both the organization and it's employees by promoting heath and well-being within the work environment. Plus it can also be fun! Check our new workplace wellness resources on this website for information and resources on how to implement an employee wellness program at your place of business.

Maureen Bligh, M.A., R.D.

Project Manager