For many people, putting healthy, wholesome food on the dinner table is a no-brainer, and a daily thing. But for those living in poverty—or a food desert—it just isn’t that easy. Sure, most people know processed food is bad. But making nutrient-rich meals on a food stamp budget is tricky—especially when you’re short on time and energy. But three big-time names in the food industry are working to make access to healthy food easier, for everyone.The superstar chefs in question: Seamus Mullen, an award-winning chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author; Bill Telepan, the executive chef of Wellness in the Schools, a non-profit dedicated to, in part, improving children’s health by providing healthy school lunches; and Joseph “JJ” Johnson, the chef in residence at the Chef’s Club, who volunteers in Harlem each week, serving a home-cooked healthy lunch to 89 low-income tenants.
“When you first have children, you start thinking about the food you’re going to give them from birth,” Johnson said at a luncheon hosted by The Horticultural Society of New York to honor the chefs. “I’m a new dad of twins and am already thinking about the type of purees I’m going to feed them. But as your kids get older, you lose focus and forget. That’s when they start eating processed food—and you can’t count on the school to feed them ‘real food’ because many aren’t providing that.”
