Plant-Forward Certification Initiative: Solutions for Plant-Forward Training and Talent Development
Advancing plant-forward innovation throughout the foodservice industry requires new and different skills for culinarians who may be dispersed across various sites or learning from home. Hear how The Culinary Institute of America is teaming up with Google to leverage technology and new learning models—including high-impact, virtual learning paired with on-site training and mentorship—to increase skill development and engagement around plant-forward imperatives across all levels of management. And we’ll also hear how the Food Team at Google is working to accelerate balanced, plant-forward food experience design for a global workforce as we look beyond this pandemic.
• Greg Drescher (VP of Strategic Initiatives, The Culinary Institute of America)
• Michiel Bakker (Director, Global Workplace Programs, Google)
• Mark Erickson ‘77 (Provost, CIA)
Bringing It Back to the Farm
Supplier-Operator Roundtable: What Does Plant-Forward Look Like in the Post COVID-19 Era?
Within just a few weeks, the coronavirus pandemic handed a devastating blow to the restaurant industry and disrupted sector suppliers and supply chains. As we wait to see how the economy and businesses recover and consumer dining patterns may change, we’ll consider the role of plant-forward—and related menu and concept innovation, more broadly—within this new era. And we’ll ask our roundtable participants what collaboration means to them now.
• Jacquelyn Chi (Director of Programs and Special Projects, Strategic Initiatives Group, CIA)
• Derek Azevedo (Executive Vice President, Bowles Farming Company)
Building Community to Advance Plant-Forward Through Ingredient and Flavor Discovery
• Anne E. McBride, PhD (Deputy Director, CIA-University of Barcelona Torribera Mediterranean Center)
• Einav Gefen (Corporate Executive Chef, Unilever Food Solutions)
• Steve Solomon (Menu Strategist, The Mushroom Council)
Building a More Resilient Plant-Forward Supply Chain
• Jacquelyn Chi (Director of Programs and Special Projects, Strategic Initiatives Group, CIA)
• Michiel Bakker (Director, Global Workplace Programs, Google)
• Maisie Ganzler (Chief Strategy & Brand Officer, Bon Appetit Management Company)
The Ghanaian Plant-Forward Kitchen: A Kaleidoscope of Flavors
Throughout the African continent, plant forward is not a new trend, but has been a way of life for millennia. In Ghana, that means abundant use of pulses, grains, legumes, yams, plantains, and a wide array of other fruits and vegetables, with spices—including the traditional suya preparation, which Zoe Adjonyoh uses on vegetables just as much as its more traditional application on meats—and herbs as aromatics. The coastal country also turns in a range of fish and seafood dishes to showcase the daily catch, and grilled meats are popular. In this presentation, Zoe, the chef-owner of Zoe’s Ghana Kitchen in London, England and author of the eponymous cookbook, who turned her operation into one that now feeds healthcare workers, will share with us some of the foundations of the Ghanaian plant-forward kitchen, with plenty of visual examples and culinary inspiration!
• Anne E. McBride, PhD (Deputy Director, CIA-University of Barcelona Torribera Mediterranean Center)
• Zoe Adjonyoh (Chef-Owner and Cookbook Author, Zoe’s Ghana Kitchen)
Closing Remarks
• Anne E. McBride, PhD (Deputy Director, CIA-University of Barcelona Torribera Mediterranean Center)
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