I found a purpose....
Growing up in the Philippines, I remember my mom always preaching to us that if we wanted to have a consistent career, we should go into the food industry. Her reasoning is that everyone will always need to eat, and by all rights, she made a lot of sense. I guess I truly kept that to heart even though it didn't really surface until I was much older.
I was really ecstatic to have realized the dream of going to culinary school, and really started to move forward my passion. In school, I was energized and I started realizing that this was IT! This is how people become alive when they are faced with their destined dreams realized. Cooking and learning about proper food handling, production and presentation kept me even more motivated to do more. The more I did, the more I learned about the industry and the business of food. Consequently, the more I learned about the food industry, the more I realized that there's a problem with a lot of the processed foods that I used to eat. I started searching on the Internet for more information, read books about nutrition, spoke with friends and acquaintances who were registered nutritionists and dietitians, and watched segments on the Green Channel for anything regarding agriculture, cooking, food production, and waste management. I also made a point to watch the movie documentaries "Food Inc.", "We Feed The World", and "The Cove"; and I was disgusted by what I saw and heard.
In my recollection growing up, most of the Grandpas and Grandmas died of old age, and never heard of Diabetes, Celiac Disease, nor Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. They all ate natural foods now considered to be unhealthy - full of saturated fat & carbohydrates. Today, three out of five people I know are diabetic, and I know of at least two or three people suffering from gluten intolerance.
Wednesday of this week, I had the opportunity to attend a presentation at the Houssel's Forum of the Long Beach Memorial Medical Center. It was the Long Beach Healthy Kids Summit presented by Leadership Long Beach, Class of 2010.
I was really ecstatic to have realized the dream of going to culinary school, and really started to move forward my passion. In school, I was energized and I started realizing that this was IT! This is how people become alive when they are faced with their destined dreams realized. Cooking and learning about proper food handling, production and presentation kept me even more motivated to do more. The more I did, the more I learned about the industry and the business of food. Consequently, the more I learned about the food industry, the more I realized that there's a problem with a lot of the processed foods that I used to eat. I started searching on the Internet for more information, read books about nutrition, spoke with friends and acquaintances who were registered nutritionists and dietitians, and watched segments on the Green Channel for anything regarding agriculture, cooking, food production, and waste management. I also made a point to watch the movie documentaries "Food Inc.", "We Feed The World", and "The Cove"; and I was disgusted by what I saw and heard.
In my recollection growing up, most of the Grandpas and Grandmas died of old age, and never heard of Diabetes, Celiac Disease, nor Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. They all ate natural foods now considered to be unhealthy - full of saturated fat & carbohydrates. Today, three out of five people I know are diabetic, and I know of at least two or three people suffering from gluten intolerance.
I've never heard of frozen foods and canned foods until I came here to the United States in 1972. The meals I remember eating were all fresh ingredients cooked from scratch that included fresh vegetables, meats of cows, pigs and chicken from the local farmers markets. Milk was delivered to our door in cold bottles by the Magnolia man dressed in white shirt, pants, and cap; and it tasted like MILK!
Wednesday of this week, I had the opportunity to attend a presentation at the Houssel's Forum of the Long Beach Memorial Medical Center. It was the Long Beach Healthy Kids Summit presented by Leadership Long Beach, Class of 2010.The purpose of the summit was to inform and educate leaders and policymakers in the community and schools about the current state of our children’s health and options for improving their health through better nutrition. The event was sponsored by Leadership Long Beach, RTH Foundation, Memorial Medical Center Foundation, Primal Alchemy Catering, Long Beach Community Action Partnership - LAMP Program, and Renaissance Hotel - Long Beach.
Walking into the room, I was a little bit intimidated especially not recognizing anyone. I spotted Chef Paul Buchanan sitting at the front table so I headed his way. Halfway there, I saw Chef Michael Poompan of the Renaissance Hotel, and we shook hands and made our way to where Paul was sitting. After a brief chat with Paul, I saw Kelli Johnson, Long Beach Sunday Market organizer for California Heights. As I was about to sit down, I was surprised and pleased to see one of my Kitchen Academy classmates, Devin Welch. Devin is a registered dietitian who has done a lot of work with the Long Beach Unified District and introduced me to Cecilia Slater. I was in good company.
Chef Paul Buchanan of Primal Alchemy was the first presenter and he shared personal stories of his experiences teaching 4th and 5th grade kids the differences between good food and bad food, providing them with the understanding of where food comes from and reading food labels through his involvement with the Days of Taste Program created by the American Institute of Wine and Food. He presented a video that showed family members, both kids and parents learning to change their food purchasing and eating habits, as well as engaging in more family oriented activities. It was a great testimony that change can happen, and that families would benefit greatly from the change.
Other presenters included Helene Calvert, M.D. - Health Officer for the City of Long Beach who talked about the obesity epidemic in Long Beach; Elisa Nicholas, M.D., MSPH of the Children's Clinic for the Long Beach Alliance for Food and Fitness who addressed the epidemic in further detail; Cecilia Slater - Nutritional Services Director for the Long Beach Unified District who spoke on nutrition services, opportunities and challenges in the school district; Stefan Harvey - Assistant Director at the California Center for Public Health Advocacy who addressed local and state policies; and Chef Ann Cooper "Renegade Lunch Lady" who brought perspective to the nutritional past, present, and future of school lunches.
After hearing all of the presenters, I thought to myself, "This is where I belong and this is what I was meant to do..." As a chef, I have an obligation not only to feed the hungry but also to be responsible for the health conditions that I effect for those who eat what I prepare, and the preservation for availability of our resources.
There is a definite shift in the way that people are looking at what they eat and how they eat; and yet there's still a good majority of people who are uninformed and mislead.
I feel blessed to be associated with people who are making a difference for a better and healthier future and even more excited for the opportunity in being a part of this movement.
Walking into the room, I was a little bit intimidated especially not recognizing anyone. I spotted Chef Paul Buchanan sitting at the front table so I headed his way. Halfway there, I saw Chef Michael Poompan of the Renaissance Hotel, and we shook hands and made our way to where Paul was sitting. After a brief chat with Paul, I saw Kelli Johnson, Long Beach Sunday Market organizer for California Heights. As I was about to sit down, I was surprised and pleased to see one of my Kitchen Academy classmates, Devin Welch. Devin is a registered dietitian who has done a lot of work with the Long Beach Unified District and introduced me to Cecilia Slater. I was in good company.
Chef Paul Buchanan of Primal Alchemy was the first presenter and he shared personal stories of his experiences teaching 4th and 5th grade kids the differences between good food and bad food, providing them with the understanding of where food comes from and reading food labels through his involvement with the Days of Taste Program created by the American Institute of Wine and Food. He presented a video that showed family members, both kids and parents learning to change their food purchasing and eating habits, as well as engaging in more family oriented activities. It was a great testimony that change can happen, and that families would benefit greatly from the change.
Other presenters included Helene Calvert, M.D. - Health Officer for the City of Long Beach who talked about the obesity epidemic in Long Beach; Elisa Nicholas, M.D., MSPH of the Children's Clinic for the Long Beach Alliance for Food and Fitness who addressed the epidemic in further detail; Cecilia Slater - Nutritional Services Director for the Long Beach Unified District who spoke on nutrition services, opportunities and challenges in the school district; Stefan Harvey - Assistant Director at the California Center for Public Health Advocacy who addressed local and state policies; and Chef Ann Cooper "Renegade Lunch Lady" who brought perspective to the nutritional past, present, and future of school lunches.
After hearing all of the presenters, I thought to myself, "This is where I belong and this is what I was meant to do..." As a chef, I have an obligation not only to feed the hungry but also to be responsible for the health conditions that I effect for those who eat what I prepare, and the preservation for availability of our resources.
There is a definite shift in the way that people are looking at what they eat and how they eat; and yet there's still a good majority of people who are uninformed and mislead.
I feel blessed to be associated with people who are making a difference for a better and healthier future and even more excited for the opportunity in being a part of this movement.
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About Me
- Chef Sam Paano
- I am the co-owner and founder of Gourmet Conspiracy, a personal chef and catering service based in Lakewood, California. My objective here is to provide open communication about various types of food and their benefits towards our health. As far as my training, I graduated from Kitchen Academy in July 2007 with high honors. I have a great deal of passion about learning the cooking styles and techniques from various cultures and incorporating them in fusion dishes.
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