BIG NEWS: We’re honored that our CEO, Mara Fleishman, has been named a winner of the prestigious Elevate Prize Foundation! Learn more about this award and all 10 winners at elevateprize.org
Nearly 30 million kids eat school breakfast and lunch. That’s more than half of the 55 million students enrolled in K-12 public and private schools across the U.S. 🤯
New year, same mission: healthy school meals for kids by empowered school food professionals. Let's do it together 🙌
Warmest holiday wishes from all of us at the Chef Ann Foundation! May your season be filled with joy, rest, and scratch cooked meals crafted with love. 💚
Whole ingredients. Healthier students. Healthier planet. 🌍
That's the power of scratch cooking. Support it today: https://ow.ly/JUqk50XJNbB
Want to serve kids healthier meals but don't know where to start? Our School Food Institute breaks it down with 11 comprehensive courses—from procurement to finances to marketing. Say goodbye to ultraprocessed foods, hello to fresh, healthy meals. Enroll now: https://www.thelunchbox.org/sfi/
Scientists have called for the removal of ultraprocessed foods from schools. For 16 years, we've helped schools start cooking from scratch.
This #GivingTuesday, help us get more schools cooking.
The science is clear. Time to act.
Donate → https://ow.ly/HI4h50XAWBr
Uplift school meals — and the people who prepare them.
BTW- doesn't that meal look pretty good? Imagine if school meals were a benefit that staff could enjoy as well. @chefannfoundation.bsky.social
parents-together.org/how-to-advoc...
Just seven days until #GivingTuesday! 🗓️ We're celebrating the school food professionals who feed kids every day with healthy meals.
If you're able to give this season, we'd love your support. If not, sharing our work means the world too. https://ow.ly/wv7050XuXzl
It's not too late to register! Join us tomorrow at 1 p.m. ET for our free webinar on how schools can incorporate local, regenerative, and organic foods into their menus. This is the third and final webinar in the three-part Healthy School Food for Thought series. Register now: https://bit.ly/4c3dOTY
Join us on November 19 at 1 p.m. ET for “School Meals for a Sustainable Future: Local, Organic, & Regenerative” — the third and final webinar in the three-part Healthy School Food for Thought series hosted by the Chef Ann Foundation. Register now: https://ow.ly/OIyW50XhIpr
Big news from Colorado! 🎉 Propositions LL and MM passed, allowing free school meals to continue. Congratulations to Hunger Free Colorado, Nourish Colorado, the Keep Kids Fed Coalition, and all the champions supporting healthy meals for kids! 🍏
We are thrilled to announce that our CEO, Mara Fleishman, is one of 20 finalists for the prestigious @ElevatePrize!
Meet all finalists here: elevateprize.org/finalists-2026
CSPI board member Jane Schmitz has been named as a 2025 School Food Renegade by the Chef Ann Foundation! Jane is among 10 other "school food changemakers from across the country who are transforming school cafeterias."
https://www.chefannfoundation.org/blog/meet-the-2025-school-food-renegades/
Join us on November 19 at 1 p.m. ET for “School Meals for a Sustainable Future: Local, Organic, & Regenerative” — the third and final webinar in the three-part Healthy School Food for Thought series hosted by the Chef Ann Foundation. Register now: https://ow.ly/OIyW50XhIpr
HUGE NEWS! Passing AB 1264 into law, California is first state in nation to take decisive action on reducing ultra-processed foods in school meals. Read our statement: https://www.chefannfoundation.org/blog/ca-takes-decisive-action-reducing-ultra-processed-foods/
With National School Lunch Week coming up, this is a great opportunity to highlight school food professionals.
These teams go above and beyond daily to ensure students access healthy meals. To help schools show gratitude, we've developed a resource full of ideas. https://ow.ly/zSZ050Vw61E.
Good news! Our panel, “Feeding Kids Like We Give a Damn: Transforming School Food,” was selected for #SXSWEDU 2026! A huge thanks to everyone who helped put us on the national stage 👏👏
We are currently hiring for several full-time positions, including:
🥦 Bilingual Program Coordinator of CA Apprenticeship
🥦 Human Resources and Office Coordinator
🥦 Grant Writing Coordinator
Curious to learn more? https://ow.ly/gryv50X35S0
Cooking meals from scratch with whole ingredients enables schools to incorporate more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and plant proteins into meals, which are less damaging to the environment.
What does acting decisively on bettering school food look like? Glad you asked! Our policy roadmap lays it all out step by step: www.chefannfoundation.org/blog/introdu...
Graphic says: School food professionals, parents, and students have been paving the way for better food for decades. Now’s the time for the administration and Congress to act decisively and be wind at their backs. Together, we can ensure that every child in America has access to a freshly prepared, nourishing meal at school.
School food professionals, parents, & students have been paving the way for better food for decades. Now’s the time for the administration and Congress to act decisively and be wind at their backs. Together, we can ensure that every child in America has access to a fresh, nourishing meal at school.
Healthier meals require investments in kitchen infrastructure, staff training, technical assistance, and reimbursement rates that reflect the reality of producing a scratch-cooked meal.
The Commission states, “real transformation requires more than vision—it requires clarity.” Since 2009, it's been clear that meaningful school food transformation requires political will. Healthier meals require investments in kitchen infrastructure, staff training, technical assistance, and reimbursement rates that reflect the reality of producing a scratch-cooked meal.
The Commission states, “real transformation requires more than vision—it requires clarity.”
Since 2009, it's been clear that meaningful school food transformation requires political will.
“We have been leading a growing movement of school food professionals, educators, and parents working to build a future where all school kitchens have the infrastructure, funding, and workforce needed to make that possible.”
- Chef Ann Foundation CEO Mara Fleishman.
Graphic that reads: “The MAHA Strategy report highlights several shared priorities – reducing reliance on ultra-processed foods, supporting local procurement, and ensuring students have access to real, whole foods at school,” said Chef Ann Foundation’s Chief Executive Officer, Mara Fleishman. “We have been leading a growing movement of school food professionals, educators, and parents working to build a future where all school kitchens have the infrastructure, funding, and workforce needed to make that possible.”
“The MAHA Strategy report highlights several shared priorities – reducing reliance on ultra-processed foods, supporting local procurement, and ensuring students have access to real, whole foods at school.”
- Chef Ann Foundation CEO Mara Fleishman.
To date, 4.4 million children have more scratch-cooked meals and fewer ultra-processed foods in their schools because of our successful programs. School districts are leading the way in making children healthy again.
Graphic that reads: In 2009, Chef Ann Cooper courageously created a national nonprofit dedicated to reimagining school food. Over the past 15 years, Chef Ann Foundation has partnered with 16,000 school districts to serve nutritious meals to their students. The Chef Ann Foundation has proven solutions to transform the health of children in America.
In 2009, Chef Ann Cooper courageously created a national nonprofit dedicated to reimagining school food. Over the past 15 years, we have partnered with 16,000 school districts to serve nutritious meals to their students. We have proven solutions to transform the health of children in America.
Graphic that reads: This week, the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission released its Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy, which leads with an opening statement that’s part of the Chef Ann Foundation DNA: “To turn the tide and better protect our children, the United States must act decisively.”
This week, the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission released its Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy, which leads with an opening statement that’s part of the Chef Ann Foundation DNA: “To turn the tide and better protect our children, the United States must act decisively.”
This week, the MAHA Commission released its "Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy," which provides recommendations to address chronic childhood diseases. And we're here to say that investing in school meals is the way to turn the tide.
www.chefannfoundation.org/blog/making-...
