MONTEREY COUNTY — Blue Zones recently announced that Monterey County—including the communities of King City, Gonzales and the Peninsula cities of Monterey, Marina and Seaside—has achieved certified Blue Zones Community designation, joining the city of Salinas, which reached this milestone in 2024.
Certification recognizes Monterey County’s well-being transformation through the successful implementation of Blue Zones Project, a first-of-its-kind population health initiative that brings evidence-based best practices in built environment, policy and social connection to participating communities. Monterey County is the first countywide project in California to earn this distinction.
Brought to Monterey County by Salinas Valley Health, Taylor Farms and Montage Health, the well-being improvement initiative optimizes environments in ways that make healthy choices more accessible—helping people live longer, healthier and happier lives.
“As Monterey County gains Blue Zones Project certification in our region, we’re proud to have been part of something that helps improve not just personal health, but the overall well-being of our communities,” said Dr. Mike McDermott, president and CEO of Montage Health. “By supporting programs that work to change policies, enhance public spaces and make healthy choices easier, we’re continuing to enhance health for everyone in our community—now and in the future.”
Since 2019, a wide network of local leaders, volunteers and community organizations across Monterey County has collaborated to achieve certification status. Monterey County’s overall community well-being score improved by 3.7 points since 2019; each point increase in well-being for a population leads to approximately a 2% reduction in Emergency Department visits and hospital utilization, and approximately a 1% reduction in total health care costs—a conservative estimate that underscores the scalable impact of well-being improvement.
In addition:
- Residents who report they are thriving in daily life rose from 58.6% to 66% of the population;
- Individuals are moving more, with 68.1% reporting at least 30 minutes of exercise three or more days per week, compared to 62% in 2019;
- 42% fewer residents report high cholesterol;
- $133.3 million in grant funding generated; and
- Over $392 million in avoided medical and lost productivity costs were gained over the last six years.
“Producing healthy fresh food and helping build a healthy and vibrant community are core to Taylor Farms,” said Bruce Taylor, chairman and CEO of Taylor Farms. “As one of Blue Zones Project’s local sponsors, we’ve proudly supported an initiative that aligns so closely with our mission. Seeing our county earn Blue Zones Community certification is a powerful reminder that when local organizations, businesses and residents come together around well-being, we can create a healthier, more equitable future for all.”
Through the Blue Zones Project initiative, Monterey County has made it easier for residents and visitors to move naturally, eat better, develop healthy social circles and live with purpose. Highlights include:
- Over 41,000 individuals involved—more than 15% of residents were engaged in Blue Zones Project programming across the County, participating in activities like walking groups, plant-based cooking demonstrations, and purpose workshops. At least 4,000 community residents volunteered as Blue Zones Ambassadors for more than 12,250 hours of their time. In 2025, Monterey County experienced 7.4% fewer health and well-being risks per capita than expected if the community had followed state trends since the Project launch. The risk reduction in the most conservative analysis equates to over $392 million in avoided medical and lost productivity costs over six years.
- A healthier workforce—70 worksites, representing over 14,000 employees, have implemented policies that improve well-being, such as designating a quiet place for colleagues to downshift, establishing a well-being committee and employee gardens, and encouraging microbreaks for staff to stretch and move.
- Better well-being at school—64 campuses across 14 school districts have taken steps to become Blue Zones Project Approved. Improvements include the establishment of youth well-being ambassador groups, integrating physical activity into daily lesson plans outside of P.E., establishing school gardens, and providing chaperoned walks to and from school through the Blue Zones Project Walking School Bus program.
- Healthier choices at restaurants—62 local eateries achieved the Blue Zones Project Approved designation by serving more nutritious options, offering smaller portions, and reducing the use of unhealthy ingredients. Some 315 Blue Zones-inspired dishes are now on the menu across Monterey County.
- Healthier options at grocery stores—healthy choices are easier for shoppers at 14 stores, which have highlighted Blue Zones-inspired foods through store tours and cooking demonstrations, distributed healthy recipes, and created Blue Zones checkout lanes that prominently feature items like fruit, nuts, and water. Half of these stores have implemented Double Up Food Bucks to enable CalFresh/SNAP customers to double their benefits on California-grown produce, making healthy choices more accessible and affordable.
- More than 196 new community policies and plans to enhance well-being—notable community improvements include establishing the Monterey County Food System Coalition to identify and pursue opportunities to adopt healthy food policies, the implementation of Complete Streets plans in each of the communities making up Blue Zones Project Monterey County’s footprint, and the engagement of youth advocates in advancing tobacco policy initiatives and supporting tobacco litter clean-ups.
- Greater economic investment—since 2019, Monterey County has seen more than $133 million in follow-on grant funding to support healthy policies using Blue Zones Project data and grant application assistance.
“Blue Zones Project Monterey County has exceeded all our early expectations,” said Dr. Allen Radner, president and CEO of Salinas Valley Health. “We engaged families with a blueprint of concepts and activities that are improving health and well-being in measurable ways. As we celebrate this certification milestone, Salinas Valley Health is committed to building on our collective success and creating even stronger partnerships with the communities we serve.”
“Monterey County’s achievement as the first county-wide certified Blue Zones Community in California is a testament to what’s possible when an entire region commits to well-being,” added Ben Leedle, CEO of Blue Zones and co-founder of Blue Zones Project. “As a majority-minority county, Monterey’s impressive improvements in health risks, economic impact, and community engagement are a powerful, culturally grounded, and place-rooted model for the rest of the nation.”
Next Steps
“We are fortunate to have the ability to transition into sustainability through integrated alignment with Salinas Valley Health and Montage Health,” said Tiffany DiTullio, executive director of Blue Zones Project Monterey County. “The four project areas will be restructured to align with each health system’s service area, allowing them to support and prioritize Community Health Needs Assessment initiatives and utilize the already established programs and resources of both organizations. This is a big win for sustaining and building upon the impact Blue Zones Project has had in Monterey County.”
Community members across Monterey County are invited to participate in Blue Zones Celebration Week, from Sept. 8-16. For daily event information, visit montereycounty.bluezonesproject.com/events.
For more information and updates, visit montereycounty.bluezonesproject.com.
