Meet Brigaid's Dan Giusti, who is bringing chefs into school cafeterias, and using the power of food to address childhood hunger and diet-related disease.
I live in New London and admire Dan's work. The team works with USDA restrictions and a miniscule food budget (something like $2 for a healthy lunch, less for a breakfast). Yet they've come up with great menus that the kids will eat.
The staff used to microwave packaged stuff, but now they're real cooks, in real kitchens.
Pre-Covid, they had monthly meals for the community, so we could taste what the kids were getting, and it was terrific.
So glad the word is spreading.
New London provides a free lunch for every child, no income restrictions.
What a wonderful program and great food choices! I'm so excited to hear about this and perhaps in the future, working with a program near me as a volunteer. I'd love to be a part of this.
Good stuff but this problem is very deep. Schools have taken out the ability to cook from their kitchens! Everything is pre-packaged. Will take giant renovations in a lot of places.
These programs are so vital but we know when you get into rural and remote communities, where anything different is un-American or isn’t a hostess prepackaged item with sugar off the chart, you even get the fight from the lunch prep staff.
I discovered Chef Giusti on "The Smart Cook" Epicurious videos on YouTube where the Pro Chef shows how to use very inexpensive ingredients to make very delicious meals. His NOMA credentials got my attention. Then I read about Brigaid and the work he is doing.
It is great that chefs with such illustrious experience, like Chef Giusti and Chef Andres, are using their many talents to help with the food inequality problem in this country, and the food quality problem in the schools.
Thank you for letting more people know this can be done.
Fantastic idea that would make such a difference for school children in the level of nutrition and their acceptance of a wide variety of food. Fresh healthy food is always the best choice. Thank you to Jose Andres for bringing this to the table.
I live on Long Island and we have some of the highest school taxes in the country I see no reason why this type of food service shouldn't be available in all Long Island schools but it isn't because the budgets are not in favor of the children they're in favor of the Educators and the administrators not sure how we break that? This is a wonderful idea and I would love to see it implemented in our schools
I have been saying this for years. K-12 Food Skills should be a priority. Imagine starting in kindergarten tasting, identifying, spelling, and moving to biology and growing, to ultimately cooking science and global food eccomies and menu options.
As a dental professional, I am suggesting that juice is not on the menu for young children. It is just as acidic as soda and will demineralize tooth enamel which will lead to decay in primary teeth. Milk products or water are the best beverages for primary teeth to have strong enamel. Thanks for all you do!
I was very excited to see the conversation between two chefs I wanted to work for. Now I'd like it grow more to find the way to utilize food waste from food service facilities for the people in need.
This is the best thing I have read! I use to help out in the school kitchen and the head “chef” was always so frustrated by what she had been given by all the administrators from the federal program to the local district to feed the children. I hope every school district across America will get on board with this program.
How does someone go about introducing their local school district to Brigaid?
I live in New London and admire Dan's work. The team works with USDA restrictions and a miniscule food budget (something like $2 for a healthy lunch, less for a breakfast). Yet they've come up with great menus that the kids will eat.
The staff used to microwave packaged stuff, but now they're real cooks, in real kitchens.
Pre-Covid, they had monthly meals for the community, so we could taste what the kids were getting, and it was terrific.
So glad the word is spreading.
New London provides a free lunch for every child, no income restrictions.
What a wonderful program and great food choices! I'm so excited to hear about this and perhaps in the future, working with a program near me as a volunteer. I'd love to be a part of this.
Good stuff but this problem is very deep. Schools have taken out the ability to cook from their kitchens! Everything is pre-packaged. Will take giant renovations in a lot of places.
These programs are so vital but we know when you get into rural and remote communities, where anything different is un-American or isn’t a hostess prepackaged item with sugar off the chart, you even get the fight from the lunch prep staff.
Keep up the good fight. 🙏🏽
I discovered Chef Giusti on "The Smart Cook" Epicurious videos on YouTube where the Pro Chef shows how to use very inexpensive ingredients to make very delicious meals. His NOMA credentials got my attention. Then I read about Brigaid and the work he is doing.
It is great that chefs with such illustrious experience, like Chef Giusti and Chef Andres, are using their many talents to help with the food inequality problem in this country, and the food quality problem in the schools.
Thank you for letting more people know this can be done.
Words are important. In my opinion Secretary of Food sounds too slim. How about coming up with something more ROBUST?
Fantastic idea that would make such a difference for school children in the level of nutrition and their acceptance of a wide variety of food. Fresh healthy food is always the best choice. Thank you to Jose Andres for bringing this to the table.
I live on Long Island and we have some of the highest school taxes in the country I see no reason why this type of food service shouldn't be available in all Long Island schools but it isn't because the budgets are not in favor of the children they're in favor of the Educators and the administrators not sure how we break that? This is a wonderful idea and I would love to see it implemented in our schools
How do we get something going in Northern Maine Union 76 school district. Blue Hill. Sedgwick, Deer Isle
I have been saying this for years. K-12 Food Skills should be a priority. Imagine starting in kindergarten tasting, identifying, spelling, and moving to biology and growing, to ultimately cooking science and global food eccomies and menu options.
Great initiative!
As a dental professional, I am suggesting that juice is not on the menu for young children. It is just as acidic as soda and will demineralize tooth enamel which will lead to decay in primary teeth. Milk products or water are the best beverages for primary teeth to have strong enamel. Thanks for all you do!
I was very excited to see the conversation between two chefs I wanted to work for. Now I'd like it grow more to find the way to utilize food waste from food service facilities for the people in need.
This is the best thing I have read! I use to help out in the school kitchen and the head “chef” was always so frustrated by what she had been given by all the administrators from the federal program to the local district to feed the children. I hope every school district across America will get on board with this program.
Great work!