DENVER – Marrying shared missions, the Good Food 100 Restaurants™ and James Beard Foundationhave forged a partnership to accelerate transparency in the culinary community and promote the importance and impact of a sustainable food system.
As a featured non-profit partner, the James Beard Foundation will dedicate resources to encourage chefs to participate in the Good Food 100—a carefully curated rating system and economic impact report based on the quantitative measurement of restaurants’ self-reported annual food purchasing data. These purchases support state, regional and national good food producers and purveyors.
“Ongoing engagement of chefs and restaurants is the stepping stone for the Good Food 100. As the nation’s preeminent culinary organization, the James Beard Foundation has deep relationships and brings a new set of participants to the table,” said Sara Brito, co-founder and president, Good Food Media Network, which publishes the Good Food 100 Restaurants List. “This is a natural synergy and embodies both of our commitments to cultivating and nurturing a better food system for all.”
In 2018, an analysis of restaurants’ food purchasing data found that the overall food purchases of the 125 participating restaurants totaled $120.1 million. Of this, restaurants reported domestic spending $80.1 million on good food, which translated to a $255 million economic impact on the national good food economy. Many of the Good Food 100 participating chefs already have strong ties to the Foundation, with 23.5 percent of the participating chefs being James Beard Foundation Chefs Boot Camp Alumni and 13.4 percent James Beard Award winners.
“We know good food is critical to a sustainable and healthy food system, but to what extent? The Good Food 100 is building the economic case to measure that impact,” said Katherine Miller, Vice President of Impact, James Beard Foundation. “As we enter a new phase of the Foundation’s future with a strong commitment to shining a light on a food system that supports people, the planet and economies, we are happy to work with the Good Food 100 team to encourage more robust participation from the culinary community.”
The Good Food 100 helps to establish benchmarks and best practices at restaurants and food service businesses across the country so they can evolve their business practices to grow the community for good food. All U.S. restaurants and food service operations–Quick Service, Fast Casual, Casual Dining, Fine Dining, Meal Delivery, Catering, Food Service (colleges/universities, hospitals, schools, sports arenas, etc.)–are eligible to participate.
The application is available until May 31, 2019 and can be previewed and completed on the Good Food 100 website.
About Good Food 100
The Good Food 100 Restaurants™ is an annual list of restaurants that educates eaters and celebrates restaurants for being transparent with their purchasing practices. Carefully curated based on the quantitative measurement of chefs’ sourcing data, the Good Food 100 spotlights those that are building a better food system. The Good Food 100 is produced and published by the Good Food Media Network, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to educating eaters by cultivating a conversation and community around the people and businesses changing the food system for good. For more information, please visit www.goodfood100restaurants.org. Follow Good Food 100 Restaurants on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
About James Beard Foundation
For more than 30 years, the James Beard Foundation has championed chefs and other culinary professionals while highlighting the centrality of food culture in our daily lives. Through the James Beard Awards, unique dining experiences at the James Beard House and around the country, scholarships, hands-on learning, and a variety of industry programs that educate and empower leaders in our community, the Foundation has built a platform for chefs and asserted the power of gastronomy to drive behavior, culture, and policy change around food. To that end the Foundation has also created signature impact-oriented initiatives that include our Women’s Leadership Programs aimed at addressing the gender imbalance in the culinary industry; advocacy training through our Chefs Boot Camp for Policy and Change; and the James Beard Foundation Leadership Awards that shine a spotlight on successful change makers. The organization is committed to giving chefs and their colleagues a voice and the tools they need to make the world more sustainable, equitable, and delicious for everyone. For more information, visit jamesbeard.org; subscribe to the digital newsletter Beard Bites; and follow @beardfoundation on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
