Chefs Boot Camp for Policy and Change

“Now, with the leadership of the James Beard Foundation, chefs have even more of an opportunity to become educated and empowered to help advocate for the change we have spent our careers striving for. I have yet another reason to be a chef: because I want to create a food system in which it is a right, not a privilege, for everyone on the planet to enjoy healthy, sustainable food.”

–Maria Hines, James Beard Award–winning chef of Golden Beetle Restaurant and Bar and Tilth in Seattle.

Background and How to Apply

The Chefs Boot Camp for Policy and Change provides a unique opportunity for civically and politically minded chefs to become more effective leaders for food-system change. During thematic retreats around the country, participants receive advocacy and media training while learning about important issues, challenges, and opportunities facing the food world. The goal is to build a growing network of like-minded chefs, provide support for personal interests and passions, and give tools and guidance that will help them act as influential advocates.

The James Beard Foundation accepts applications for Chefs Boot Camps on a rolling basis.

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Each Boot Camp Gathering encompasses:

• A geographically, culturally, and demographically diverse group of 15 chefs
• A unique destination to facilitate group cohesion
• Policy and media training by industry and political experts on specific food-system topics
• Hands-on activities that engage chefs with local natural resources, such as harvesting and visits to local farms, slaughterhouses, fisheries, and other producers
• A collaborative dinner prepared by the participating chefs
• Educational sessions about pressing food-system topics, such as the farm Bill or sustainable fisheries
• Exposure to campaigns of partner organizations, such as the Pew Charitable Trusts’ campaign against antibiotic overuse in livestock
• Strategic brainstorming about effective action points and next steps

Future Programs

Louisville, Kentucky, May 2013

The next Chefs Boot Camp is taking place at Louisville's 21c Museum Hotel from May 12 to May 14, and will focus on regional food systems. Activities will include a tour of nearby Woodland Farm, known for its sustainable farming practices, heritage livestock breeds, and biofuel program; and a meeting with Louisville mayor Greg Fischer, whose policy agenda includes strengthening the role of local food in the city.

"The James Beard Foundation is continually working to take the conversation about our food system to the next level," says JBF president Susan Ungaro. "Our Chefs Boot Camp fills a critical need for hands-on policy and advocacy skills training that allows participating chefs to bring messages for constructive change out into the culinary world.”

Participating chefs at the May 2013 Boot Camp in Louisville will include:

• Timon Balloo, SUGARCANE raw bar grill, Miami
• Kathy Cary, Lilly’s, Louisville, Kentucky
• Dominique Crenn, Atelier Crenn, San Francisco
• Jose Gutierrez, River Oaks, Memphis
• Chris Hastings, Hot and Hot Fish Club, Birmingham, Alabama (JBF Award winner)
• Maria Hines, Maria Hines Restaurants, Seattle (JBF Award winner and pilot Chefs Boot Camp participant)
• Sara Jenkins, Porsena, NYC
• Phil Jones, Colors Restaurant, Detroit
• Cormac Mahoney, Madison Park Conservatory, Seattle
• Kyle Mendenhall, The Kitchen Community, Boulder, Colorado
• Tory Miller, L’Etoile, Madison, Wisconsin (JBF Award winner)
• Naomi Pomeroy, Beast, Portland, Oregon
• Hari Pulapaka, Cress Restaurant, DeLand, Florida
• Bruce Sherman, North Pond Restaurant, Chicago
• Levon Wallace, Proof on Main, Louisville, Kentucky

Past Programs

Walland, Tennessee, July 2012

The first Chefs Boot Camp for Policy and Change was held in the summer of 2012 at Blackberry Farm in Walland, Tennessee. Support was provided by the Pew Charitable Trusts.

Participating chefs at the July 2012 Chefs Boot Camp included:

• Hugh Acheson, Five & Ten, Athens
• Michael Anthony, Gramercy Tavern, NYC
• Jeremy Barlow, Tayst, Nashville, TN​
• Jeremy Bearman, Rouge Tomate, NYC
• Sean Brock, McCrady’s, Charleston, SC​​​​
• Josh Feathers and Joseph Lenn, Blackberry Farm, Walland, TN
• Colby Garrelts, Bluestem, Kansas City, MO​​
• Rock Harper, DC Central Kitchen, Washington, D.C.
• Maria Hines, Tilth Restaurant and Golden Beatle Restaurant & Bar, Seattle
• Mike Isabella, Graffiato, Washington, D.C.​
• Ed Kenney, Town, Honolulu
• Andrea Reusing, Lantern Restaurant, Chapel Hill, NC​​
• Sam Talbot, AOL’s GMC “Trade Secrets,” NYC
• Cathy Whims, Nostrana, Portland, OR​​​​
• Alex Young, Zingerman’s Roadhouse, Ann Arbor, MI

Additional Information

The program is conducted under the direction of James Beard Foundation trustees Michel Nischan, chef of the Dressing Room and co-founder of Wholesome Wave, and Eric Kessler, founder of Arabella Advisors.

For information about supporting Chefs Boot Camp, please contact Kris Moon, our director of charitable giving and strategic partnerships, at kmoon@jamesbeard.org or at 212.627.5252.