Changing the world through the power of food

Television personality chef José Andrés gave a keynote presentation on how food can be an agent of change at the recent 2018 Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo. In 2010, Andrés founded World Central Kitchen, a nonprofit nongovernmental organization that uses a network of chefs to be part of the solution during disasters around the world. Through World Central Kitchen, Andrés uses the power of food to strengthen communities and economies. Andrés said that chefs are a natural fit for disaster areas because restaurant kitchens are chaotic, and chefs work well in chaos. Chefs “are a very big army that can bind together” to help those in need and effect change, he said.

World Central Kitchen has provided food and other assistance after disasters in California, Guatemala, Cuba, Haiti, and other locations around the world. After Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, Andrés and World Central Kitchen opened kitchens around the island and served 150,000 meals a day. “When you have hungry people, what do we need? Food,” Andrés said. “There is always food somewhere. What we need is to activate mechanisms to move food where it is needed.” The organization also began bringing medicines to those who couldn’t get their prescriptions filled.

According to Andrés, uniting chefs to prepare meals after disasters helps victims get the nutrition they need during a time of extreme stress. This is much better than ready-to-eat (RTE) meals because RTE meals are “like a bomb of calories with none of the nutrients,” Andrés said. He also pointed out that the Farm Bill does not support the model of the MyPlate icon and urged the audience to contact their congressional representatives to change the Farm Bill so that it covers more vegetables and fruits. “Food is the most diplomatic way to bring people together,” Andrés said.