ScratchWorks Blog, June 2025
By Abby de Riel
ScratchWorks is supported thanks to generous funding from the Chef Ann Foundation, From Now On Fund, Life Time Foundation, Newman’s Own Foundation, Wellness in the Schools, and Whole Kids Foundation.
We are proud to report that 105 food service professionals from 80 school districts across the country attended our second ScratchWorks Gathering this May, held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a founding ScratchWorks school district. School food leaders came together to connect and share best practices for increasing scratch-cooking in their school districts. Over the three-day gathering, participants listened and learned, reinforcing that cooking meals from scratch using whole, fresh ingredients provides students with the nutrition they need for their educational success, health, and well-being.
ScratchWorks welcomed more than 30 speakers with unique backgrounds and expertise in the food and policy space. Linda & Luke Black Elk, food sovereignty activists from the Minneapolis area, welcomed participants and grounded everyone in the interconnectedness of people, plants, animals, and the environment. June Jo Lee, a renowned food ethnographer, captivated participants with her deep understanding of food culture. Dr. Akua Woolbright, a nutrition expert and national program director, reminded everyone how important it is to take care of ourselves so that we may care for others and offered common-sense approaches to healthy eating. And, we welcomed back Cindy Long, the Former Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition & Consumer Services at the USDA, who spoke at our Inaugural Gathering two years ago in Austin. Cindy delivered an honest and thought-provoking perspective on policy initiatives affecting nutrition.
Participants also engaged in nine break-out sessions, featuring critical topics most requested throughout the past two years and fostering knowledge exchange as an in-person extension of ScratchWorks’ Shared Learning Program such as: Culinary Training Models, Scratch-Cooking with Limited Space, Building a Team that Thrives, Healthy School Meals for All, Getting Started with Farm to School, Values-Based Procurement, Ask Me Anything Policy, and Recipe Challenges/Recipe Contest. Participants also shared their interest in learning more about the advocacy and promotion of scratch-cooking as well as getting buy-in from the school district, leadership, families, and staff — the marketing and communications of the why behind feeding kids food with whole, fresh ingredients.
Participants were also able to take field trips to Minneapolis Public Schools’ Central Kitchen, Roseville Area High School Kitchen, Bongards Cheese, or Ferndale Turkey Farm. At their respective field trips, participants saw firsthand the innovation taking place on the ground in Minneapolis within the school food system and its partnerships with local purveyors. At Ferndale Farm, participants saw the power of local farm-to-school partnerships at a third-generation turkey farm that sells its meat to Minneapolis public schools
Throughout the Gathering, participants could visit interactive tables hosted by the Chef Ann Foundation, Culinary Institute of Child Nutrition, Green Garden Bakery, Life Time Foundation, Readers to Eaters, and Wellness in the Schools, which provided resources for participants and student engagement from local organizations. Some tables were hosted by Minneapolis students, providing them the chance to spotlight initiatives they were proud of in their home district. (Maybe the Beet Brownies and Lemon Zucchini muffins from Green Garden Bakery will be added to lunch menus in the future!)
Of course, it wouldn’t be a Gathering of school food professionals without school food recipes being served. Breakfast and lunch offerings for participants included an Apple Crisp from Austin Independent School District, a Seasonal Quinoa Salad from the Chef Ann Foundation, Pesto Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup from Wayzata Public Schools, Sweet Potato and Pinto Bean Quesadillas from Wellness in the Schools, and Blueberry Pancakes from Minneapolis Public Schools (a recipe which you can enjoy at home)!
Participants shared that they have benefited from the camaraderie, validation, and moral support, knowing others face similar challenges. One participant shared, “ScratchWorks is one of the very best opportunities for us to collaborate and improve school food around the country — as a true collaborative.” Another shared, “The wealth of knowledge that we have to share amongst ourselves, and expanding that at a national level, is why I joined the ScratchWorks Gathering.”
Bertrand Weber, Director of Culinary and Wellness Services of Minneapolis Public Schools, whom we interviewed earlier this year, reflected on the importance of this Gathering. “While next year brings uncertainty around the future of school food and government funding, our commitment to scratch cooking remains strong. The Gathering inspires school food operators to support each other as we are collectively working for the health of our country’s students.”
Nancy Easton, Founder and Executive Director of Wellness in the Schools, a founding organization of ScratchWorks, was empowered by the Gathering and reflected on the collective’s sixth year. In the summer of 2019, Nancy gathered a handful of school service leaders and partners together in New York City for the “School Food Innovation Lab” to innovate and disrupt the norm of school meals, and with the belief that feeding kids real food shouldn’t be so hard. That summer, ScratchWorks was born as an initiative by and for food service leaders. ScratchWorks emerged to support school districts in their efforts to move to more scratch-cooking without judgment of where they were on the scratch-cooking continuum.
Nancy shared in her opening remarks at the Gathering: “Two years ago in these very opening remarks, I called this conference a gathering, and somehow it stuck. That small word change is who we are metaphorically — we are trying to do something different, both in this gathering (not conference) and with school meals. I would never call myself a disruptor, but I can’t, and I know none of you can stand by and accept the norm in school meals because we know that is not right for kids. ScratchWorks is here to support you, to support dialogue, sharing of best practices and challenges, so that you can lead the country for scratch cooking to become the norm.”
