Aramco scores a touchdown with DC Central Kitchen
Aramco’s support funded a dedicated workspace area to advance skills training and general use for DC Central Kitchen’s production staff and culinary arts students.
Aramco's support in fighting food insecurity across the nation will soon be recognized in a newly built space for DC Central Kitchen in the Michael R. Klein Center for Jobs and Justice located on the Southwest DC waterfront.
Aramco has been a supporter of DC Central Kitchen's innovative approach to combating hunger by providing thousands of meals for local service agencies with a community kitchen where unemployed adults work to develop job training and culinary skills. The 34-year-old nonprofit believes that the solution to hunger lies not just in the provision of healthy food, but also in the creation of meaningful careers and community leadership opportunities.
Rania Kiblawi, Government Affairs, Aramco Americas’ Washington DC office (left) attends a Freshfarm event at local Watkins Elementary with celebrity chef and food activist José Andrés and DCPS students, parents, and teachers.
Aramco's partnership helped to fund the “Touchdown Table” area of the 36,000-square-foot facility, which features an 8-person modern flexible workspace giving students and staff access to technology and training for skill building and career advancement.
“This community engagement is exciting because it combines Aramco's commitment to social responsibility with technology and advancing new opportunities,” said Nabeel I. AlAfaleg, President & CEO Aramco Americas.
A pre-opening event was held in late September 2022 with renowned celebrity chef and food activist José Andrés, Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, and DC Central Kitchen CEO Mike Curtin in attendance.
Thousands have graduated from the organization's culinary job training program, and the new facility will now have the capacity to more than double their outreach and train 150% more individuals annually by 2025.
Representatives from the Washington DC office were on hand for the pre-opening.
Last year, Aramco Americas employees got out in the field—literally—by going to a local area orchard to pick blueberries for tasty meals prepared by DC Central Kitchen culinary staff.
Aramco supports Freshfarm FoodPrints a program that brings healthy eating and nutritional education to DC public schools.
Inspiring nutritious eating
Making sure healthy eating and nutritional education is making its way into the classroom at local DC public schools is the mission of Freshfarm FoodPrints, a not-for-profit that improves health and education outcomes by integrating gardening, harvesting, cooking, and nutritious eating at partner schools within the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS).
Aramco began supporting the program with financial support in 2019, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic and representatives recently attended a FoodPrints events to see the program in action.
FoodCorps, a partner organization, provided a cooking demonstration in the teaching kitchen at Watkins Elementary School, and students provided snacks they made throughout the day, using ingredients sourced from the school garden as well as local farmers.
“When great people come together, amazing things happen. It takes a village to move a community forward,” said Chef José Andrés who was also on hand for this event, commenting on the teamwork and organizations in the DC region that are working on food insecurity.
Since 2020, FoodPrints has grown from 13 schools to 20 DCPS elementary schools participating, serving over 7,000 students with food education experiences.
