What’s Cookin’?

Ann Cooper, a former gourmet chef, traded it all in three years ago to take over the lunch program at the Berkeley Unified School District in California.

Why don’t more schools serve kids healthier, organic foods?

What’s easy for one person isn’t necessarily easy for a big industry. We’re doing it, but it’s hard. One, it’s a lot more expensive.

What inspired you to take your present job?

I wrote a book called Bitter Harvest: A Chef’s Perspective on the Hidden Dangers in the Foods We Eat and What You Can Do About It (Routledge, 2000). I decided that this was a good way for me to give back and be able to help kids.

What are your days like?

We’re cooking 7,000 meals a day for 10,000 kids in 16 [K–12] schools. Most days I’m in by 4 a.m. It’s certainly not nine-to-five, but this is my life.

Is it hard to get kids to eat well?

We’re not trying to make something that kids don’t understand or get. We’re trying to cook food that kids will eat. I try to cook seasonally. I try and make ethnically appropriate, interesting comfort food.

Can a district with less money than yours and no chef achieve the same results?

Every school district has the money. It’s whether they make it a priority. We’re a small school district and our budget is $110 million.