José Andrés, a longtime supporter of DC Central Kitchen, has donated an additional $500,000 to the nonprofit’s Healthy Corners initiative, doubling his initial gift announced in 2022 to $1 million.
Andrés served as co-chair of DC Central Kitchen’s fundraising campaign for its new, 36,000-square-foot community kitchen training facility, which opened last year. He is also the founder and host of DC Central Kitchen’s Capital Food Fight fundraising event, and chair emeritus of its board of directors.
Healthy Corners was launched in 2011, and helps address food deserts in D.C. neighborhoods that are lacking access to grocery stores and fresh produce.
It now works with small retailers to install and stock Healthy Corners fresh food shelves with produce and healthy snacks, which it sells at wholesale prices and in smaller quantities. Retailers, in turn, sell at below-market prices. The program also offers business assistance to small retailers, nutritional education and jobs through its Culinary Job Training Program.
This year with the help of Andrés’ recent donations, DC Central Kitchen aims for the Healthy Corners program to reach up to 60 locations in the District’s low-food-access areas, and reach 18,000 food insecure shoppers annually with its locally grown fruits and vegetables.
The opening of DC Central Kitchen’s community kitchen has added capacity, allowing Healthy Corners to increase sales by more than 16%.
“When we open our minds to what people can do when they work together, and we use food as a tool to build communities, powerful change can happen. Healthy Corners embodies that approach, uniting small businesses, local residents, family farmers and graduates of DC Central Kitchen, who have overcome immense barriers in life,” Andrés said in a statement.
DC Central Kitchen estimates 1.2 million units of food units have been sold at Healthy Corners-stocked stores since 2020. It has partnered with DC Health and federal nutrition programs that allow several of the retailers to accept SNAP and WIC benefits from D.C. residents on food assistance programs.
Healthy Corners also provides meal access for nonprofits, youth programs and shelters, farm-to-school menus at D.C. schools and culinary job training.
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