Citizen Chef with Tom Colicchio (iHeartPodcasts)

What do chefs and the food industry owe black Americans? Tom Colicchio talks with chef and historian Michael Twitty about the effects of racist systems on American foodways and how food and culinary history could be addressed through the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act.

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Welcome back from a long holiday! Chef Andrea Drummer is the woman behind The Original Cannabis Cafe in West Hollywood, which is the first cafe in that city licensed to serve cannabis along with its menu. We’re going to talk to her about pioneering a new segment of the two industries, and how exactly one orchestrates pairings that feel more like ordering from a sommelier as opposed to a liquor store. We also talk to Senator Kim Jackson of Georgia, who was elected to the State Senate this year. She co-sponsored a bill to amend the state’s constitution to legalize recreational consumption, all under the larger mission of criminal justice reform. She helps to remind us that this is about way more than just enjoying a nice high with our burgers and nachos.

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Sometimes our neighborhood eateries make us gather beyond the meal. In this episode, Pinky Cole of Slutty Vegan ATL joins Tom to talk about her plant-based pursuit of doing just that despite the pandemic.

The entrepreneur and philanthropist explains how her suite of expanding vegan dining experiences feeds food insecure communities, and even fights for equal voting rights with a Side Heaux and fries.

Follow Tom on Twitter and Instagram @tomcolicchio and share what you want to hear with hashtag #CitizenChef.

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Tom Colicchio and Bowery Farming's Irving Fain discuss the future of the food supply chain. Tom spotlights how the visionary's food company uses indoor farming technologies to grow nutritious food in a water-saving, pesticide-free environment. And they're not just growing food at Bowery Farming, they're also fostering avenues for people across the Northeast region and beyond to access and enjoy an array of tasty biodiversity. Learn more about Bowery at boweryfarming.com/vision.

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Tom Colicchio talks to Dr. Angela Stuesse (Scratching Out a Living: Latinos, Race, and Work in the Deep South) and investigative reporter Alissa Zhu about the largest single-state immigration enforcement operation in our country's history, and the conditions workers in poultry processing plants often work in.

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Tom chats with food and agriculture journalist Leah Douglas about the role of corporate concentration in the food system. Since April 2020, Douglas has mapped outbreaks of COVID-19 among workers at meat packing and meat processing plants across the nation. They discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic has brought longstanding concerns around health and safety in meat processing plants to light.

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Reclaiming the food you threw away and up cycling it into nutrient-dense animal feed.

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We’re closing out the season with a look at “True Cost Accounting.” There is a growing movement to include “true cost accounting” or TCA when considering the cost of food -- which can be far more than what you pay in a supermarket. 

Our guest today, food journalist and The Farm Report host Lisa Held is quite familiar with that report and cited it in her article for Civil Eats entitled “Can Accounting for the True Cost of Food Change the Global Food System?”

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Tom and Food Research and Action Center Ellen Vollinger and Massachusetts Congressman Jim McGovern discuss the historic permanent increase to the decades-old Thrifty Food Plan coming in October 2021.

Follow Tom on Twitter and Instagram @tomcolicchio and share what you want to hear with hashtag #CitizenChef.

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Who's making sure people eat during times of disaster? In part one of our episodes looking into disaster relief, World Central Kitchen CEO Nate Mook joins Tom to examine how our governments respond with food aid in localized catastrophes like we saw in NYC after 9/11 and in global emergencies like COVID-19. They also discuss how to incite lasting change with the FEED Act.

Resources

• H.R.6700 - FEED Act
• World Central Kitchen

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Tom and Congressman Earl Blumenauer of Oregon discuss the Restaurant Revitalization Fund and have a wide-ranging discussion about where legislation around environment and food intersect.

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Hey, Citizen Chefs! In case you missed it, here's a replay of Tom's guest appearance on iHeartRadio's Why I'm Voting podcast. Take a listen and don't forget to vote on election day 2020!

If you want to change, preserve, or build a better America, there’s one easy way to make your voice heard: Vote. This year, iHeartRadio is teaming up with over 20 incredible celebrities (plus a handful of our most popular podcasters) to get the country excited to go vote, broadcasting the personal, emotional and heartfelt stories behind why showing up to the ballot box means so much-- not just as individuals, but for our entire nation.

Thank you to our partners AXE, Knorr® & Seventh Generation

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Citizen Chef will be back soon!

Chef and food activist Tom Colicchio and executive producer Christopher Hassiotis catch up on the long year behind us and the work ahead.

Follow Tom on Instagram and Twitter @tomcolicchio and tell us what you want to hear with #CitizenChef.

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Small food suppliers like oyster farmers and cheesemakers are really who set restaurants apart. In most cases, a majority of what they produce is sold to restaurants. But with the pandemic, many restaurants have closed -- and when restaurants close these small businesses are left without a market. Tom Colicchio talks to Peter Stein of Peeko Oysters and Mateo Kehler of Jasper Hill Farms about how they've changed their business models.

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Welcome back to Citizen Chef! After wrapping last season, Tom Colicchio has been working tirelessly with the Independent Restaurant Coalition to lobby for funding to help save our restaurants. This week, catches up with one of the key allies of the bill, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. They discuss why the money is necessary to revitalizing the restaurant industry and how it will help our neighborhoods bounce back from losses due to the pandemic.

Resources: Restaurant Revitalization Fund https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/covid-19-relief-options/restaurant-revitalization-fund

Follow Tom on Instagram and Twitter @tomcolicchio and tell us what food policy stories you care about with #CitizenChef.

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In this no-frills episode, Tom Colicchio hands the mic over to two guests whose experiences collecting MRE's in so-called food lines have lead them to careers on the front lines of disaster relief.

First, we hear a first-person account from Blaine Fisher, a Louisiana native and former paramedic who now teaches Emergency Management at Tulane University. We also hear from Keron Bascombe of Tech4Agri, a Trinidad and Tobago-based social enterprise aimed at providing "AgriRecoveryKits" to people who are food insecure due to natural disasters and the pandemic. But first, we pick up where we left off in Part 1 with Nate Mook of World Central Kitchen to talk about government's role in disaster preparedness,

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Kathleen Merrigan was the United States Deputy Secretary of Agriculture from 2009 to 2013 and is now the Executive Director at Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems at Arizona State University. She is an advocate for organic farming, worked with former First Lady Michelle Obama on the Let’s Move campaign, and while working at the USDA she shaped the “Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food” initiative. Not only is Dr. Merrigan the person with answers on how food is regulated, she also is the person who knows the right questions to ask - including some involving chocolate cake.

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Chef Tom Colicchio (Top Chef) is back with conversations about the policies that shape how the U.S. food system works. Join Tom as we head into the summer with fresh takes on the future of farming, the restaurant industry and access to nutritious food during a pandemic.

Follow Tom on Twitter and Instagram @tomcolicchio and share what you want to hear with hashtag #CitizenChef.

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Tom and Giving Kitchen co-founder Jen Hidinger-Kendrick discuss the state of mental health in the restaurant industry, how the pandemic has added pressure and hardship to some circumstances, and what Giving Kitchen does to support people in the restaurant industry. We learn how Giving Kitchen reaches food service workers, and discuss common issues affecting an industry that offers a comfort to so many.

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Americans aren't hungry because of drought or famine. Some say Americans are hungry because there isn't political will to make sure everyone is fed. How did we get here? In this episode, Tom Colicchio adds a chapter in his food policy primer season. He's joined by Joel Berg, CEO of Hunger Free America, who provides a short lesson in U.S. nutrition assistance programs and the future of fighting food insecurity in America.

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Tom Colicchio has issues with food! This podcast is about what we eat, where and who it comes from, and the politics, decisions, policies and people that shape our food system – with the goal of turning curious listeners into more informed, engaged citizens. Led by restaurateur and Top Chef host Tom Colicchio, the podcast delves into policy, labor, hunger, democracy, sustainability, farming, health, social justice, technology and the restaurant business. Of particular concern is a post-coronavirus and covid-19 world. Each episode Tom takes a deep dive into an issue by interviewing experts, journalists, food producers or others to tell an engaging and topical story about an aspect of our food system that the general public may not know, connecting the dots about how our food system really works, really doesn’t, and outlining its impact on our society – all while remaining positive and presenting attainable solutions to some of the biggest food issues out there.

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Tom Colicchio talks with "Free for All: Fixing School Food in America" author, Dr. Janet Poppendieck about the history and future of school lunch programs.

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In early March, slim pickings on grocery store shelves, news of meat plant shutdowns, skyrocketing demand for food bank services, predictions of supply chain breakdown and food shortages drove many Americans to do what we haven't collectively done since WWII: plant home gardens. Tom checks in with journalist Morgan Levey about the boom in seed sales and interest in home gardening.

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Tom Colicchio and Ian Urbina of The New York Times talks about the people behind the fish on your plate and the stories in his book, The Outlaw Ocean.

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Tom talks with Hudson Valley Seed Company Co-Founder and Creative Director Ken Greene about heirlooms, seed sovereignty and how seeds reflect human history.

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Tom talks with food critic and A Hungry Society Podcast host Korsha Wilson about supporting black culinary artists and relishing American dining experiences.

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Sure, Chef Tom Colicchio is an Emmy-winning restaurateur but he’s also a food advocate on a mission to improve our food systems. In this first episode, Tom talks about his vision for the show and the way the pandemic has highlighted the delicate and inflexible nature of the American food web.

Tom calls up friend and food policy go-to, Dr. Marion Nestle (Food Politics) to outline a few of the major issues we'll look into this season. 

Resources

• “Table For None: Tom Colicchio Explains What Restaurants Need To Survive,” Fresh Air
• “In the Face of COVID-19, State Legislators Push for Federal Support of Local Food Systems,” Civil Eats
• A Place At The Table, 2013 documentary

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In this stripped-down episode, Tom Colicchio talks to Gerardo Reyes Chavez of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers about the work leading towards systemic solutions to end modern-day slavery and put a stop to crimes against growers across the food system.

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