Essential Ingredients Podcast 079: Healthy Habits Start Young: Making Food Education Accessible with Carolyn Federman
"If we can't bring the kids to the kitchen, maybe we can bring the kitchen to the kids." —Carolyn Federman
Food education often gets treated as optional, even though it shapes health, culture, and opportunity from the very start. When kids lack access to hands-on food learning, the gap shows up everywhere from classrooms to hospitals. This conversation explores what changes when education meets practicality.
Carolyn Federman shares how years of work alongside Alice Waters and the Edible Schoolyard revealed a major barrier. Teaching kitchens worked, but they were out of reach for most schools. That insight led to the creation of Charlie Cart, a mobile teaching kitchen now used across schools, libraries, food banks, and pediatric settings nationwide.
Press play to hear how food education scales without losing heart, and why access must include skills, not just ingredients.
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How Charlie Cart was designed to bring cooking education anywhere kids gather
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Why food education is essential to food access and public health
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The role of culture, family, and shared meals in shaping lifelong habits
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Lessons learned from building and manufacturing a mission-driven product
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How schools, libraries, hospitals, and communities are using mobile kitchens
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What it takes to make food education a national priority
Meet Carolyn:
Before starting the Charlie Cart Project in 2014, Carolyn Federman led Alice Waters' Edible Schoolyard Project, developed programming with the Jamie Oliver Foundation, co-founded the Berkeley Food Institute, and co-produced UC Berkeley's Edible Education course with Michael Pollan. She is a proud emeritus of the Board of Directors of the Berkeley Public Library Foundation, and the author of New Favorites for Cooks (TenSpeed Press 2018), based on children's favorites from the Carlie Cart Project curriculum. Carolyn is the parent of two fabulous kids (who love to cook and eat!)
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Episode Highlights:
00:39 Meet Carolyn Federman: From Edible Schoolyard to Charlie Cart
05:04 Transition from Edible Schoolyard to Charlie Cart: Alice Waters' Support
08:34 The Importance of Shared Meals & Cultural Food Connections
13:19 Designing the First Charlie Cart: Inspiration & Early Challenges
17:54 Overcoming Startup Challenges and Manufacturing Hurdles
22:03 Lessons Learned: Building Trust and Navigating Business Relationships
27:34 Charlie Cart in Hospitals & Clinics: Adapting Food Education
31:43 The Meaning Behind "Charlie Cart": History and Inspiration
35:03 Defining Food Education: Access, Knowledge & Life Skills
36:01 How You Can Help: Advocacy, Voting, and Healthy Choices