The power of food.

   It was the great food philosopher, Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin who said, “The future of nations will depend on how they feed themselves,” and we see today how very true these words are.

    To eat today is a political statement, but even with the public’s growing interest in food and diet issues, politicians rarely include food as part of their political platforms. You hear so much about oil and gas as the most important fuel for the planet, but it’s not. Food is, because it’s what moves everybody, and without food we are nothing. And not so far in the future, presidents and politicians, the leaders of our world, will have to have food on their campaign platforms, on their agendas. And we as people have to start asking our local and national governments, “How are you going to be planning to feed your country? What are your sustainable solutions?”

   As food professionals, we don’t just feed the few that visit our restaurants; we do so much more. The choices we make as members of the food industry are like voting; they show what we believe in and we have the influence to show people what’s good for themselves and their families, and our communities. This is a great power, and it’s a power that we need to use smartly. We need to work tirelessly to address the food issues in America and around the world, to engage our families, friends, fans and our elected officials. We especially need to be more committed than ever to the people who don’t have the means to dine in our restaurants.


From:

The Chef José Andrés on the power of food.