Chefs Collaborative – a national network of chefs, food professionals, and producers – is changing the sustainable food landscape. When it was created almost 20 years ago, a sustainable food system was still a new idea. The founders of the organization—including Rick Bayless, John Ash, Alice Waters, Deborah Madison, Nora Pouillon, Mary Sue Milliken, Ann Cooper – were visionaries. They understood that chefs could significantly impact consumer buying habits, food production and distribution. Today, the organization’s national network includes more than 12,000 chefs, food professionals, producers, and activists.
Chefs have a unique opportunity to influence change in the food system – both through their connection to their customers and each other, and through their own buying power. Chefs Collaborative is the only national nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting sustainability among chefs in both restaurants and institutional food service; fostering local and regional networks of chefs; and ensuring a strong voice in the media for the chef perspective on a more sustainable food system.
Programs & Priorities
Chefs Collaborative is widely recognized for its “Sustainable Food Summit,” which annually galvanizes more than 300 chefs, food professionals and the media for a 2-day educational and experiential conference. The 2011 Summit in New Orleans featured nationally known speakers like Dana Cowin of Food & Wine, Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms, and Ken Cook of the Environmental Working Group. Past Summits have featured great chefs like Rick Bayless, Sam Hayward, and Jasper White. At our Chicago Summit in 2009, the USDA’s Ann Wright announced their new Know Your Farmer, Know your Food initiative.
Meat of the Matter (new title in development)
Sourcing and cooking sustainably produced meat is a significant challenge for most chefs. Barriers may include cost, availability, unfamiliar flavor profiles, inconsistent fabrication and distribution, lack of experience working with the whole animal, and more. We will develop and implement a comprehensive program to educate and engage chefs on issues surrounding meat – including ecological, economic, and public health impacts of different production methods and humane animal husbandry – as well as address sourcing challenges for chefs seeking sustainably raised meats. Through member-driven workshops, trouble-shooting sessions, a mentor program, and publications, we aim to make our network of chefs fluent in sustainable meat issues and to minimize impediments to their ability to source and serve sustainable meat.
Seafood Solutions
The Chefs Guide to Sourcing Sustainable Seafood is in its third printing and Green Chefs, Blue Ocean, the online sustainable seafood tutorial (available on our website), developed with Blue Ocean Institute, is used in culinary schools and restaurants around the country. These and our other educational initiatives reach hundreds of chefs each day, making the path clearer for chefs and cooks interested in running more sustainable kitchens.
Food distribution & value chains
Supply and distribution are the two barriers most cited by chefs interested in sustainability. In 2009, Chefs Collaborative produced a report evaluating food distribution methods around the country. In 2012, Chefs Collaborative will partner with Food-Ex in New England on a food aggregation and distribution program that engages local farmers, and restaurant and food service chefs. We are supporting this program because we believe that, through its elimination of layers of middlemen, it will be commercially viable and replicable in the long run. Its success will shorten the distance from farm to table in New England; opening up new and more profitable markets for local farmers, while increasing the availability of affordable local products to area restaurants and institutions
Materials and publications
In addition to the Seafood Solutions materials referenced above, we produce regular Sustainable Food Reports with in-depth and practical information for chefs; the new Chef vs. Chef series, on our website, where chefs share their techniques for cooking sustainably; and, FreshNet, our informative email digest.
“Locals” – networks of chefs and food producers
Real change happens only where there is dialogue. For many years, the Chefs Collaborative has organized and supported networking events where local stakeholders have the opportunity to learn about complicated topics like improving the local supply of pasture raised beef or sustainable seafood, or to address supply and distribution problems together. In the next three years, Chefs Collaborative will continue this work by building and supporting 12 on-the-ground local networks, “Locals,” bringing together chefs, farmers and other producers to address key challenges in regional food systems and support chefs through peer-to-peer networking.
The organization is currently working with groups in Seattle, Portland, OR, Portsmouth, NH, Providence, RI, Boston, and New Orleans. Future priorities may include: Chicago, DC, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, Los Angeles, and Denver.
To learn how you can get more involved in Chefs Collaborative’s programs, please contact our program director, Leigh Belanger at leigh@chefscollaborative.org.
