RENO, NV - Thursday, local chefs with the American Culinary Federation joined culinary students from the Academy of Arts, Careers and Technology to teach fourth graders at Bernice Mathews Elementary about the importance of nutrition and food safety.
"I think it's really cool that we're doing this because kids need to know about nutrition and what foods are good for them," AACT Junior Hayley Stoika said. "It will help them lead a healthier life growing up and into their teen years."
It's the second in a three-part series aimed at modifying the way we think about food.
"We as a society have a big problem," ACF High Sierra Chefs Association Executive Director Dave Preston said. "But if we start to orient our young folks that's the best way to go. As chefs we are the stewards of flavor and now by default we're becoming the stewards of the health of our customers and our nation."
It's part of a national initiative spearheaded by the American Culinary Federation. The hope is to bring programming like this to classrooms all over the region.
"This is a commitment and as chefs, we have to be committed to this because we want a healthy nation," Preston said. "It's easy to make food taste good but it's also an easy thing to use in a healthy form. You just have to think about it and work just a little bit harder."
Next Thursday chefs will prepare four dishes from inexpensive, healthy ingredients for students and their families at the school. The High Sierra Chefs Association will provide health-conscious cookbooks to parents.