SupplySide

Doug's Domain

Douglas J. Peckenpaugh is community director of content and culinary editor of Food Product Design. His career has centered on food and agricultural publishing, working as a writer, editor and publisher of magazines, books and websites. He also worked as a cook and restaurant manager while earning his B.A. in Professional and Creative Writing from Purdue University.

Keeping Tabs on Our Foodie President

January 29, 2009 Comments

Posted in Blog

Did you see our President (well, at the time, a state senator...) on Check Please? Surely you’ve heard about his fondness for (IMHO) the best fine-dining Mexican restaurant in Chicago? And if Alice Waters can’t stir up a brouhaha on go-local/eat-organic, who can?

We, the people, have elected a foodie president. God bless the United States of America.

Ever since Nov. 4 (and before, for those who saw the rising tide...) the heat has been on Barack Obama to bring substantial food-policy change to the White House. And this last week, I saw one great step toward that collective goal.

By bringing Chef Sam Kass to the White House, President Obama has made a subtle gesture toward the importance of food in his administration. Kass, under the tutelage of noted Chicago Chef Paul Kahan, absorbed his share of progressive opinions on food. That aside, I believe bringing another (like-minded, from what I know) chef to work with existing Chef Cristeta Comerford will help keep the federal kitchen’s focus—which might have no small impact on policy—firmly grounded in sustainable, forward-thinking topics du jour.

Many a culinary eye is focused on Washington. Let’s see what develops.