FIT Symposium
Cultivating Food Literacy
February 20 & 21, 2025
Taking place at Johnson & Wales University’s Providence Campus, the annual FIT Symposium gathers stakeholders from across the food system to work towards solutions to the challenges facing our industry and our communities.
This year’s theme is “Cultivating Food Literacy” and will focus on understanding the key impacts of nutrition and ingredients; where food comes from; and how to grow, manage and prepare it. In addition, we will explore solutions for improving food insecurity, K-12 food education, and nutrition among high-risk populations with renowned chefs, policymakers and food activists.
The Symposium will feature interactive panel discussions, tastings and hands-on workshops leveraging JWU’s modern culinary facilities. Attendees will gain unique insights that will expand their ability to impact change within their respective communities.
Registration opens later this fall!
Program Highlights:
Keynote Speaker: Marc Vetri
Featured Panelists:
Mike Kostyo | Menu Matters
Kat Craddock | Saveur Magazine
Taylor Hanson & Kevin Harper | Food on the Move
Demonstrations & Workshops:
Sammy Monsour | Sustainable Soul Food
Monica Glass | Gluten-Free Baking
Christine Gagnon | Wild Mushroom Identification
Jennifer Pereria | Cider & Apple Wine Tasting
Sheryl Julian & Sally Vargas | Food Photography
Jessica Carbone | The Whys & Hows of Cookbook Writing
Additional workshops hosted by JWU chefs
SYMPOSIUM ARCHIVE
With two days of expanded programming, this year’s FIT Symposium focused on bringing a world of culinary techniques to Providence. With a full day of interactive workshops, attendees could try new working methods and learn from experts in soba making, plant-based pastry, coffee cupping, chocolate-making, and more.
In addition, Jacques Pépin ’10 Hon. and Farmer Lee Jones shared wisdom from their long careers — Pépin of his 70 years of making people happy with his cooking, whether on PBS or Instagram, and Farmer Lee Jones of his 40 years of sustainable farming.
FIT Symposium Brings a World of Expertise to Life
“Cooking is love. You cannot cook indifferently.” Jacques Pépin ’10 Hon.
Culinary professionals have a reputation for being independent and driven, and their work frequently demands a head-down work ethic favoring autonomy over community. The third edition of JWU Providence’s Food Innovation & Technology (FIT) Symposium brought together a diverse group of chefs, activists, makers and creators to network and collaborate.
Johnson & Wales University’s College of Food Innovation & Technology (CFIT) held the second FIT Symposium, a virtual gathering of the food industry’s top thought leaders, in March 2022.
Watch a playlist of individual panels below. (You can scroll through the panels by clicking the button marked “1/11” in the upper right corner of the screen.)
Panels included:
- Culinary Nutrition Defined
- Food Safety Evolution
- Future Focused: Leveraging Trends to Shape the Industry
- Leading Women: The Entrepreneurship Journey
- Reaching our New England Food Vision
- Peak Performance: Fueling the Modern Athlete
- Innovation from Curiosity
- Focused on Food Justice
- Keynote: Evolution of a Chef
- Growing a Grainshed
- Closing the Gap: Cannabis & Your Overall Health
The 2021 FIT Symposium examined the curve balls, unexpected challenges and potential for massive change that 2020 threw the industry’s way. Veteran restaurateurs Emeril Lagasse ’78, ’90 Hon. and Aarón Sánchez served as keynote speakers, sharing their own lessons learned, while Champe Speidel ’00, ’16 Hon. of Persimmon (Providence, RI), Paul Kahan of One Off Hospitality Group (Chicago, Ill.), and Lindsay Tusk of Quince (San Francisco, Calif.) traded war stories and wisdom from an unprecedented year of upheaval and adaptation.
Watch their thought-provoking discussions below, and catch up on the takeaways in this post-Symposium wrap-up.
