How Three Chefs are Tackling Food Insecurity in Their Community
We’ve all heard the adage, “Think globally, act locally.” This Earth Day, we want to highlight a local effort that exemplifies this saying to a T: the Wildcat Food Recovery Club at Johnson & Wales University.
In spring 2021, JWU faculty members Joe Melanson and Tim Brown recognized a problem with food waste at the university. Food was being used during classes to teach students how to roast a chicken or perform different knife cuts, for example. But after a class family meal, perfectly good leftovers were being sent either to composting or to the landfill.
Then, chefs Melanson and Brown learned about food insecurity, a problem that affects an estimated 41% of college students in the United States and 343 million people worldwide. To help combat food insecurity at JWU, the chefs decided to start collecting leftover food at the end of culinary classes, cooling them down according to health department specifications, and distributing them. And so, the Wildcat Food Rescue Club was born.
“We started by distributing meals out of a cooler at noon and 2 pm on Thursday afternoons,” say the chefs. But, as the amount of food grew, they needed a better distribution system. With some grants and support from the university, they were able to buy three refrigerators and distribute the food to both of JWU’s Providence campuses: Bayside and Downtown.
After completing her master’s degree at Boston University, chef Kelly Fernandes jumped on board and launched the Second Scoop project with the club. “I wanted to offer a dessert for students to go with their meals,” she says. To do this, chef Fernandes collects leftover dairy, eggs, fruits, veggies and spices and turns them into creations such as coriander ice cream (don’t knock it ’til you try it) and beet-raspberry sorbet.
As the club became successful, chefs Melanson and Brown wondered if their model could be applied to the greater Rhode Island community. After being awarded a research grant, they were able to work with Westerly High School to launch a food waste recovery program in March 2025. The program is now on its way to the Westerly Fire Department and community events in Pawtuxet Village.
Amid the growth in funding and support, chefs Melanson and Brown are staying true to their values and mission. They turned down funding from a large foundation because it required a sign on the fridge saying, “for food insecure students only.” They worried that this might discourage food-insecure students from utilizing the service.
Looking forward, the chefs have goals to further expand their project into the Rhode Island community. With recent changes in the U.S. government policies, they worry about the reliability of grants as a funding source. But with the support they’ve garnered from faculty, students and community members, they are optimistic that the JWU Wildcat Food Recovery Club will continue to grow and flourish.
