Chef Seth Bixby Daugherty and Real Food Initiatives

If you look up Chef Seth Bixby Daugherty, you’ll find critical acclaim of his menus at Minneapolis-area restaurants D’Amico Cucina and Cosmos and even a cover photo in a 2005 Food & Wine magazine naming him one of America’s 10 best new chefs. But when he saw first-hand the food that his children were eating at school, “Chef Seth” turned his focus to revamping school cafeteria menus.

In December 2006, Chef Seth, along with his wife, Karen, a pre-school teacher, and local health care experts as partners, launched Real Food Initiatives, a small nonprofit organization that is currently overhauling seven Minneapolis-area public school lunch menus by replacing processed, fried foods with fresh, healthy selections and working with local farmers to incorporate their produce into the menu choices. He also teaches what he calls “life skills workshops” to help parents learn how to buy healthy yet affordable foods. He hopes to be able to expand his program nationwide.

Beyond the volunteer time he devotes to Real Food Initiatives, he also works with the Wilder Foundation, Urban Ventures and Share Our Strength as a volunteer consultant, teaching the skills of eating healthfully and economically to poorer families.

View a video segment of Chef Bixby Daugherty talking about his work with Real Food Initiatives on the Rachael Ray show.