JACKSON, MISS– Is Mississippi the new hotbed of future foodie celebrities? The next Rachel Ray might be growing up in Tupelo. Maybe there’s a budding Anthony Bourdain going to high school in the Delta.
The next generation of culinary celebrities may be incubating right here in the Magnolia State, thanks to a program called FoodCorps.
News Mississippi spoke with FoodCorps team member Elizabeth Smithson who is based at the FoodCorps site in Oxford. She explained that FoodCorps is part of the national AmeriCorps program.
“It teaches children in grades K-12 a new way of thinking about food,” said Smithson.
FoodCorps starts with the basics:
—The difference between whole foods and processed foods
—How to make the healthiest food choices at the grocery store
—Planting a garden
—Cooking the food that you grow in healthy ways
“In many ways, FoodCorps simplifies some of the principles of the Locavore and Farm-to-Table movements and teaches good nutrition values that kids can easily maintain for the rest of their lives,” said Smithson.
FoodCorps even has a ‘pop-up’ kitchen that enables them to give cooking lessons at Boys & Girls clubs, youth groups, civic clubs and just about anywhere people might congregate.
FoodCorps plants a seed, figuratively and literally, offering a new way for children to think about food and maybe a related career in the culinary field.
And if you want to find out more about FoodCorps, check out their website.
