When Victor’s own chef Michael Speranza left for work last Friday morning, he wasn’t headed off to “just another normal day at the office.” He was headed for the White House in Washington, D.C., to help kick off first lady Michelle Obama’s new healthy foods initiative, Chefs Move to School. It was going to be a day that was anything but normal.
Speranza, a classically trained chef and Rochester restaurant kitchen veteran, joined 500 other chefs selected from a nationwide search to gather on the White House south lawn in the blazing hot sun and discuss ways to curb childhood obesity and teach kids to make healthy food choices.
Speranza was in very good company. National stars such as Rachael Ray, Tom Colicchio, Cat Cora, Anne Burrell, Aaron Sanchez, Ellie Krieger and Alex Guarnaschelli joined him and an army of grass-roots chefs who work in restaurants, food banks and culinary schools in some 37 states. Together they heard the heart of Mrs. Obama, White House Assistant Chef Sam Kass, and the delegation of chefs who had visited public schools and tasted their delicacies early in January 2010.
“You are all at the heart of this initiative, because if anyone understands nutrition and food, it’s the folks sitting here in their whites today,” declared Mrs. Obama, referring to the traditional chef uniform. “You know more about food than almost anyone – other than the grandmas – and you’ve got the visibility and the enthusiasm to match that knowledge.”
Speranza and other celebrity and grass-roots chefs were united as they accepted the White House mission to adopt a school in their own community and work with parents, teachers and cafeteria workers to educate children about food and nutrition. Their goal is to develop healthful recipes for cafeterias, offering cooking lessons or helping a school to plant a garden. No problem for Speranza. In his role as Corporate Executive Chef at the Chicago-based food manufacturer Custom Culinary, he is constantly developing on site training programs and recipes for chefs and food service operators in the eastern U.S.
“We are going to need everyone’s time and talent to solve the childhood obesity epidemic, and our nation’s chefs have tremendous power as leaders on this issue because of their deep knowledge of food and nutrition and their standing in the community. I want to thank them for joining the Let’s Move! campaign,” said Michelle Obama in a White House blog posting May 13.
So far, nearly 1,000 chefs have signed on to the program, which was spearheaded by White House Assistant Chef Sam Kass. Obama said she hoped to inspire thousands more to get involved, one for each of the 95,000 U.S. schools.
But while she hopes to spark a grass-roots revolution, Obama was careful to caution the chefs that change would require patience. “Just like you wouldn’t be thrilled if someone came in your restaurant and told you what to do, we’re not asking you guys to go into schools and take over,” she told the chefs. “Cafeteria workers are “going to need your support. But it’s got to be a collaboration.”
Speranza is looking forward to partnering with public school nutritionists. “I think they’ll look at this opportunity pretty positively,” he says. “Food is very passionate, but we’re going to see together what we can do to make it more nutritionally sound. Moderation is the key.”
Chefs kicked off the day with a two hour breakfast session organized by anti-hunger organization Share Our Strength. A series of speakers, from Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and New York Public Schools Executive Chef Jorge Collazo to school lunch scholar Janet Poppendieck, spelled out the challenges in reforming the system.
“You’d never think of implementing a salad bar as guerrilla warfare. But that’s what it is. Kid by kid. School by school,” said Collazo.
Added Tony Geraci, the director of food service at the Baltimore City Public Schools and a former chef: “The world of restaurants and the world of K-12 food are different planets. Chefs who come to school food are going to have a hard learning curve.”
Speranza, whose children attend Victor Schools, is also looking beyond the lunchroom. “I think it’s more than just changing the food. It’s going to be working with the administrators and parents and kids to foster a more healthy lifestyle. I would like to work with more than just Victor and reach out as far as I can. I know there are other chefs who would be thrilled to help out.”
When Victor’s own chef Michael Speranza left for work last Friday morning, he wasn’t headed off to “just another normal day at the office.” He was headed for the White House in Washington, D.C., to help kick off first lady Michelle Obama’s new healthy foods initiative, Chefs Move to School. It was going to be a day that was anything but normal.
Speranza, a classically trained chef and Rochester restaurant kitchen veteran, joined 500 other chefs selected from a nationwide search to gather on the White House south lawn in the blazing hot sun and discuss ways to curb childhood obesity and teach kids to make healthy food choices.
Speranza was in very good company. National stars such as Rachael Ray, Tom Colicchio, Cat Cora, Anne Burrell, Aaron Sanchez, Ellie Krieger and Alex Guarnaschelli joined him and an army of grass-roots chefs who work in restaurants, food banks and culinary schools in some 37 states. Together they heard the heart of Mrs. Obama, White House Assistant Chef Sam Kass, and the delegation of chefs who had visited public schools and tasted their delicacies early in January 2010.
“You are all at the heart of this initiative, because if anyone understands nutrition and food, it’s the folks sitting here in their whites today,” declared Mrs. Obama, referring to the traditional chef uniform. “You know more about food than almost anyone – other than the grandmas – and you’ve got the visibility and the enthusiasm to match that knowledge.”
Speranza and other celebrity and grass-roots chefs were united as they accepted the White House mission to adopt a school in their own community and work with parents, teachers and cafeteria workers to educate children about food and nutrition. Their goal is to develop healthful recipes for cafeterias, offering cooking lessons or helping a school to plant a garden. No problem for Speranza. In his role as Corporate Executive Chef at the Chicago-based food manufacturer Custom Culinary, he is constantly developing on site training programs and recipes for chefs and food service operators in the eastern U.S.
“We are going to need everyone’s time and talent to solve the childhood obesity epidemic, and our nation’s chefs have tremendous power as leaders on this issue because of their deep knowledge of food and nutrition and their standing in the community. I want to thank them for joining the Let’s Move! campaign,” said Michelle Obama in a White House blog posting May 13.
So far, nearly 1,000 chefs have signed on to the program, which was spearheaded by White House Assistant Chef Sam Kass. Obama said she hoped to inspire thousands more to get involved, one for each of the 95,000 U.S. schools.
But while she hopes to spark a grass-roots revolution, Obama was careful to caution the chefs that change would require patience. “Just like you wouldn’t be thrilled if someone came in your restaurant and told you what to do, we’re not asking you guys to go into schools and take over,” she told the chefs. “Cafeteria workers are “going to need your support. But it’s got to be a collaboration.”
Speranza is looking forward to partnering with public school nutritionists. “I think they’ll look at this opportunity pretty positively,” he says. “Food is very passionate, but we’re going to see together what we can do to make it more nutritionally sound. Moderation is the key.”
Chefs kicked off the day with a two hour breakfast session organized by anti-hunger organization Share Our Strength. A series of speakers, from Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and New York Public Schools Executive Chef Jorge Collazo to school lunch scholar Janet Poppendieck, spelled out the challenges in reforming the system.
“You’d never think of implementing a salad bar as guerrilla warfare. But that’s what it is. Kid by kid. School by school,” said Collazo.
Added Tony Geraci, the director of food service at the Baltimore City Public Schools and a former chef: “The world of restaurants and the world of K-12 food are different planets. Chefs who come to school food are going to have a hard learning curve.”
Speranza, whose children attend Victor Schools, is also looking beyond the lunchroom. “I think it’s more than just changing the food. It’s going to be working with the administrators and parents and kids to foster a more healthy lifestyle. I would like to work with more than just Victor and reach out as far as I can. I know there are other chefs who would be thrilled to help out.”
