Cooking for Solutions Supports Sustainable Seafood

Bon Appétit Management Company sponsors benefit at Monterey Bay Aquarium

Palo Alto, Calif. (May 18, 2005) – Jim Dodge knows seafood, he knows chefs, and he knows that their destinies are intertwined.

Dodge works for Bon Appétit Management Company, a food service company that develops programs to connect chefs with sustainable food sourcing. As a chef and director of special culinary programs at Bon Appétit, Dodge has activated his extensive industry contacts to help build the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s annual Cooking for Solutions event into one of the country’s foremost showcases for sustainable cuisine.

Celebrity chef Martin Yan, actor John Cleese, and top chefs from across the country have been tapped by Dodge for this week’s Cooking for Solutions event, highlighting recipes that feature seasonal, regional cuisine, and seafood that has been sustainably harvested. The event is a fundraiser for the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Each year, one chef is the ‘Honored Chef’ at the event. Alice Waters and Jacques Pepin are among past honorees. This year, 15 chefs will participate, including Bon Appétit executive chefs Helene Kennan of the Getty Center and Dory Ford of the Aquarium’s own Portola Café. Chef Martin Yan will be the 2005 honoree.

Chefs are deeply affected by the activities of the weekend, according to Dodge, especially by meeting ocean conservationists and local farmers who grow and supply the organic food used in their restaurants. This new knowledge and renewed inspiration is taken back to cities and towns all over the country, reaching thousands of guests in restaurants each day with the message of sustainability.

“Chefs have the power to influence how people eat,” said Dodge. ” Cooking for Solutions lets chefs connect our passion for culinary expertise with a commitment to save the oceans from over-harvesting and environmental degradation. It is an honor for Bon Appétit to sponsor this event.”

“Chefs have told me how the experience of Cooking for Solutions has opened their eyes even further to the urgency of responsible food sourcing,” said Ginger Hopkins of the Monterey Bay Aquarium. “Bon Appétit is extremely effective at communicating the benefits of sustainability to the chef community. We’re making a tremendous impact with this program, and we won’t stop until all chefs know which fish are okay to serve, and which are not.”

Since 2002, Bon Appétit chefs have served sustainable seafood in its cafes across the nation in accordance with the Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program. With its 190 cafes now serving 55,000,000 meals each year, the company’s purchasing policies significantly affect chef, staff, and consumer awareness about the future of sustainable food.

The company has also sponsored “Can the Oceans keep up with the Hunt?”, a documentary film about the state of our seas and the issues of disappearing fish. The film is part of the Save Seafood Campaign ( www.Save-Seafood.org ), a national public education and outreach program for university students which includes campus film screenings, web resources, and activist starter kits.

For more information about Cooking for Solutions, please visit www.mbayaq.org.

For more information about the film tour, please visit www.Save-Seafood.org.

About Seafood Watch
As seafood stocks come under increased pressure worldwide, the Monterey Bay Aquarium has developed the Seafood Watch campaign to help consumers, restaurants and retailers choose seafood from well-managed fisheries — a buying decision that can preserve the health of ocean wildlife. www.seafoodwatch.org

About Bon Appétit Management Company
Known for its socially responsible practices, Bon Appétit Management Co. is an onsite restaurant company offering full food service management by providing café and catering service to corporations, universities, and specialty venues. It has more than 190 cafes in 26 states.