🌱 OneKitchen Newsletter

December, 2025 | Issue 3

💬 Note from the Director

As we come to the close of this year, I want to pause and share how much of a privilege it has been to serve alongside you and stewarding the OneKitchen program. Working with this community of chefs, partners, and advocates has truly been a full-circle moment in my life and I could not be more grateful to each and every one of you. The care, creativity, and commitment you bring to this work continues to inspire me every day.

As we look ahead to the new year, I want to share an important update. I will be transitioning into the Executive Director role for Wholesome Wave in the new year, and with that shift, I’m excited to share how OneKitchen’s leadership will continue to be supported and strengthened.

As of January 2, 2026, Nokkie Lipsey, our Colorado Coalition Coordinator, will be stepping into the Director role full-time. Nokkie brings deep relationship-building skills, thoughtful leadership, and a strong understanding of what makes OneKitchen special. We are thrilled to continue growing the program alongside Nokkie and Zoe’s leadership, and I have great confidence in what the next year will bring.

Looking ahead, next year holds so much promise. We’ll be rolling out new communication tools, including WhatsApp, expanding training resources and advocacy engagement, and convening as a national community for the first time—all as we prepare to thoughtfully move out of the pilot phase and into the next chapter of OneKitchen’s growth.

While my role is evolving, please know I will not only be heavily involved throughout the transition period, but OneKitchen will remain a part of my work always and I’m committed to continuing to be a resource in any way that is helpful. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me any time—I’m always here and always happy to support.

Thank you for your trust, your partnership, and the incredible work you do each day. It has truly been an honor to work on this program and alongside each of you.

With deep gratitude,

Casey

---

📣 Program News & Updates

Thank you to everyone who participated in the Fast Action Campaign! The campaign’s goal is to restore USDA support to small and mid-sized farmers to reach millions of school children and low-income families with locally grown food. Expanding access to locally grown food expands markets and grows our local economies by reinvesting dollars within our communities. As chefs, you have an important perspective to add to this conversation!

Following our campaign webinar on December 1st, we launched the social media campaign in which we shared a series of videos created by various chefs across OneKitchen. In Colorado, Chef Josh Niernberg of Bin 707 Foodbar, recorded a video alongside Farmer Mark Waltermire from Thistle Whistle Farm. In Georgia our campaign video was created by CheFarmer Matthew Raiford from Gilliard Farms. In Texas, Chef Sonya Coté and Eden East Farm’s Farm Manager David Barrow filmed a video on their farm in Bastrop, Texas. In California our campaign video was made by Chef Patrick Mulvaney of Mulvaney’s B&L.

We also featured chefs from additional communities, some of which will see OneKitchen coalitions established in the next couple of years. In Louisiana, our video was made by chef and restaurateur Dickie Brennan, and in Arkansas, chef Rob Nelson of Tusk & Trotter, filmed our campaign video. We can’t thank everyone enough for all the hard work they put into making these videos. It was no easy feat and we are so pleased with how they turned out! We are still tracking results but as of this newsletter, we have reached a approximately 50,000 people and likely thousands more.

As a part of the campaign, OneKitchen went down to Washington, DC, for what was a hill day on December 8th. With us, we had chefs Daniel Asher of Working Title Food Group, Matthew Raiford, Kevin McGee of Urban Oak Initiative, Patrick Mulvaney, Rob Nelson, Mike Nelson of GW Fins, and farmer David Barrow. Our very own Casey Crane represented chefs in Washington state. They brought amazing energy, strong conviction, and powerful arguments to all the lawmakers with whom we met!

We had a packed day in which we met with the following legislative offices from each OneKitchen state:

CA: Senator Schiff (D), Senator Padilla (D), Representative Costa (D)

CO: Senator Bennet (D), Representative Evans (R), Representative Crank (R)

GA: Representative Scott (R), Representative Carter (R)

TX: Senator Cornyn (R), Representative De La Cruz (R)

LA: Senator Kennedy (R), Senator Cassidy (R), Speaker Johnson (R), Representative Carter (R), Representative Scalise (R)

AR: Senator Boozman (R), Representative Womack (R), Representative Crawford (R)
WA: Representative Newhouse (R)

Our OneKitchen chefs/farmers reiterated the importance of making funding available for states to purchase whole, locally grown food for schools and food banks to strengthen & expand American agriculture, support rural & urban economies & workforces and improve health in communities across the country. They spoke powerfully about OneKitchen and why investing in local agriculture benefits everyone!

This campaign is an example of the kind of opportunities we want to continue to provide for our members going forward. In early 2026, we hope to have more opportunities for other OneKitchen members to get involved. Stay tuned for more details in the new year!

Photo taken by William Teasley

---

🥗 A Note From Chef Michel Nischan

As we close out the year, I want to take a moment to celebrate what we’ve built together—and to offer my heartfelt thanks for the commitment, creativity, authenticity, and leadership you’ve brought to OneKitchen.

OneKitchen became something you can truly feel in communities this year: four live, growing coalitions, anchored by chefs, coordinators, and action partners who are showing what’s possible when we lead with passion, invest in relationships, and focus on evolving our food system into one that serves everyone.

Along the way, we saw wins that deserve to be named and celebrated:

• In Colorado, the coalition helped deliver an advocacy win on LL&MM, proving that smart policy and grounded community work can move together—to great results.

• In California, the coalition’s presence at Terra Madre was a powerful expression of what OneKitchen is about: values-driven collaboration, farmer and public school system partnerships, with a bold vision to serve California school children for generations to come.

• In Georgia, I’m especially energized by the coalition’s pivot to an exciting new partner doing meaningful work to embed produce prescriptions in government-sponsored healthcare—a strong example of adaptive leadership and a clear step forward in “food as medicine” impact.

• In Texas, following an energized relaunch, the coalition is completing its first major milestone on the advocacy roadmap by intentionally building relationships with key lawmakers through a gratitude-focused outreach campaign—laying the groundwork for a future where low-income Texans have reliable access to Texas-grown foods every year.

We also took a major leap as a national network: our first national campaign launch and Hill Day—a milestone that was, by all measures, a great success. During a time where it is often challenging to get conservative lawmakers to open their doors, particularly for conversation on the topic of LFPA, our Chef members were welcomed to lead generative conversations in support of the goals we share with the rest of the field. It was a clear signal that OneKitchen is not only building locally; we’re beginning to shape the national conversation. And we’re just getting started.

I’m proud of what you’ve accomplished, and even more proud of how you’ve done it—with integrity, generosity, and a shared belief that food can be a point of alignment and a force for healing, dignity, and systemic change.

Looking ahead to next year, I am deeply excited about what’s coming:

• Deeper growth and new opportunities within and across each of our coalitions

• Launching new coalitions and welcoming more communities into the OneKitchen model

• A national convening, bringing us together in person to learn, build, and chart what’s next

• And the continued work of preparing to move beyond the pilot phase—strengthening the foundation so OneKitchen can scale with purpose

Thank you for being part of this. Thank you for the hours, the care, the problem-solving, the storytelling, the advocacy, and the leadership. OneKitchen exists because you show up—and because you believe that we can create a food system that truly nourishes everyone.

Wishing you rest, joy, and amazing food experiences with the people you love. I can’t wait to build what’s next together in the new year.

With deep gratitude,

Chef Michel Nischan and the OneKitchen Team