1994
Change Isn’t Happening Fast Enough
Michel Nischan is a four-time James Beard award-winning chef leading the local and sustainable food movement since 1981. When his son was diagnosed with Type-1 diabetes in 1994, it was a personal and professional game-changer. Determined not to feed his customers food he wouldn’t feed his family, Nischan moves forward devoting himself entirely to creating "restaurants of well-being.” He founds Heartbeat in New York City in 1998, followed by Pure Restaurant in Mumbai, India, in 2006. While Nischan was seeing traction for his Cuisine of Well-Being approach on the up-scale restaurant scene, ominous things were happening in the background for Americans struggling with low-income.1996 - 2002
The State of the Undernourished Nation
1996: Welfare reform triggers the largest decrease in the federal food assistance safety net since the New Deal. Food insecurity soars.2001: Benefits are restricted faster than Americans are being lifted out of poverty, emergency food providers struggle with the highest level of people seeking food assistance ever; 1 in 4 is a child.
2002: Congress refocuses the SNAP (food stamp) program on increased commodity distribution through the TFAP program, resulting in cheaper, less nutritious calories hitting the tables of food insecure Americans. The obesity epidemic is officially recognized by the WHO. Nutrition insecurity becomes real.
2007
Setting the Wheels of Change in Motion
Chef Michel recognized that nutrition insecurity is a bigger health problem than food insecurity for low-income American, so he founded Wholesome Wave in partnership with the late Gus Schumacher, and with grant funding from his then-business partner Paul Newman. The team sets out to move the needle on nutrition access and make the change they have been waiting to see.
2007
A Mission of Change
The mission of Wholesome Wave is to end food and nutrition insecurity across America by increasing the affordability and access to fresh produce for everyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, income, or zip code. The Wholesome Wave approach is entrepreneurial and market-based; raising private funds to demonstrate how public funds could be more effectively leveraged, having a profound impact on the industry as a whole. From farmers to grocers to the supply chain and health benefits - these successes will help Wholesome Wave permanently influence federal policy.
2014 - 2018
Changing the Landscape
2014: By sharing program outcomes from Wholesome Wave’s extensive network of community-based practitioners with key decision makers in Congress, Chef Michel and Gus are instrumental in securing $100M for the food equity field. Written into the Farm Bill, this grant is called the Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive, or FINI.2018: FINI is expanded to $250M, made baseline and permanent, and is renamed the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP), after Gus's passing. GusNIP permanently expands affordable access to fruits and vegetables for low-income Americans.
2019-2022
Change is Happening Now
2018: The team begins a new quest to answer the question: “What kind of financial support is needed to accelerate the change that has already been achieved?” Based on the Newman’s Own model, Nischan creates Wholesome Crave as a plant-based solution for large scale feeding facilities that saves labor while giving back.2019: Wholesome Crave becomes Google Headquarters’ preferred plant-based soup provider.
Wholesome Crave ratifies the Chef Impact Board, comprised of some of the most successful chefs in America working toward a more equitable, just, and sustainable food system. Each member holds an equity position in the company, demonstrating our commitment to honoring racial, ethnic, age, and gender diversity as key ingredients to a more delicious food future.
2022 - 2024
Changing the Future
Wholesome Crave makes sustainbly delicious, chef crafted soups for scaled foodservice. With our culturally authentic product line, you get more than just convenience—you get on-trend recipes perfected by world renowned chefs who understand what it takes to impress the tastes and dietary preferences of today’s picky eaters.Meet and exceed the demand for high quality, ready to use products that check all your clients’ sustainability boxes while providing a delicious meal solution with versatile applications. With a more robust return-to-office and escalating college campus incentives, the demand for delicious, authentic foods that meet the demand for different, enhanced menu experiences has never been greater.Better Food,
Better World
Wholesome Crave not only gives back financially; the brand and products enable others along the supply chain to pull the lever of change as well. Every purchase of Wholesome Crave soups promotes clean, healthy eating, reduces our carbon footprint, and influences the health and well-being of American individuals and families. Help us help you make the change for a more sustainable and equitable food system.