New Release: *The Nation's Kitchens: Educate, Nourish, Industrialize* – Geneviève Zoïa and Laurent Visier

Publication of the book by Geneviève Zoïa and Laurent Visier, *Les Cuisines de la nation: Éduquer, nourrir, industrialiser*, in the “Le Monde qui vient” series.

Abstract:

In just a few decades, schools have been stripped of their kitchens, their cooks, their raw ingredients, and their connection to the land. Production facilities, known as “central kitchens,” are now responsible for feeding our children.

Just as the “green” revolution is destroying small-scale farming, on-site kitchens are disappearing, giving way to agribusiness—including a small handful of corporations that monopolize institutional food service in France. It is the very act of eating that is being devalued, along with the caring work provided by the “cafeteria ladies.”

Furthermore, the interests of industry and the government are intertwined in school meal programs, where certain products are deemed essential in the name of national identity—often at the expense of excluding children from immigrant backgrounds in poor neighborhoods, who are supposed to be the primary beneficiaries of school lunch programs.

Yet the school cafeteria offers a valuable opportunity to bring farmers into the school, to reconnect with the living world, and to develop a deeper appreciation for things and people. This is the vision championed by resistance movements, which advocate for a return to on-site cooking in order to connect the school to its local community and rebuild the bond between farmers, cooks, and diners.

A thorough investigation that sounds the alarm about the industrialization of school cafeterias.

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