This week, we felt you might enjoy hearing about how a famous celebrity chef, restaurateur, author and TV personality, Jamie Oliver, is aligned with the Red Rabbit philosophy of food and nutrition.  As excerpted from the Digital Journal, the well-known Brit has launched a food revolution, bringing healthier eating to homes, schools and communities in the U.S.A and U.K. In an effort to get people to eat healthy, sustainable foods, Jamie Oliver has come up with Food Revolution Day (May 19^th) , “a global day of action for people to think about where their food comes from and get back into their kitchens.”

Oliver's main philosophy is “Better food, better life,” and he has made it his life's mission, “to get people to eat real food, made from scratch. I believe - and research has shown - that by eating a diet of real food (meats and vegetables, carbohydrates and the occasional treat) that you cook for yourself and your family will make you a healthier person. When I look around the world at the rising rates of obesity and diet-related disease, I am saddened and angered because this is entirely preventable. People just need food education and a few cooking skills.” Oliver's television programs and videos on YouTube, plus campaign initiatives are producing tangible results and have inspired many people to change their way of living, and eating.

Oliver states, “After ‘Jamie’s School Dinners’ aired in the U.K., the people petitioned the government to serve better food to our children and they actually listened and voted more than $500 million into the system. In America, after the ‘Food Revolution’ aired, we inspired people to petition against flavored milk and pink slime in our schools, which not only got the USDA to change the regulations around flavored milk, but led fast-food companies and grocery stores to stop selling pink slime.” (check out our post on pink slime posted last month) His simple solution for improving the food situation? “Demand better,” he says. “More fresh, less processed. More access to good fresh food and food education so that the lovely people at home actually know what to do with a fresh vegetable.”

 “There are so many incredible people working on this issue, so we wanted to provide a platform for anyone with skills and knowledge around food - chefs, gardeners, food bloggers, food educators, etc. - to offer experiences/events (classes, seminars, tours, sessions) to kick start a real food movement in their community,” Oliver says.  “People, (like our own Red Rabbit parents) can go to the website and create a local food event and it will be in their global event listings for the public to attend. It can be an event for five people or for 50 and the more creative the better. There will be people in over 45 countries around the world hosting their own dinner parties in support of food education.” Red Rabbit has joined in the campaign and on May 19^th at our kitchen in Harlem we will be hosting a very special Red Rabbit Saturday.

We agree with Chef Oliver.  That’s why we offer our kids, parents and educators healthier meal (breakfast, lunch and snack) options during school hours and educational programs to help making healthier food choices while at home.  We have dedicated a good portion of our personnel and resources to our educational initiatives, offering cooking and gardening labs as well as Red Rabbit Saturdays. Red Rabbit Saturdays take place twice a month on Saturday mornings from 10 AM-12 PM at the Red Rabbit kitchen in Harlem.  Each Cooking Lab is led by a Chef. Parents and children (ages 8-13) learn age-appropriate kitchen skills and work together to make delicious, healthy treats. For more info, contact: education@myredrabbit.com  

It's Time for a Change!

The Red Rabbit Team