DC Central Kitchen
Overview:
DC Central Kitchen focuses its efforts into eight main
program areas.
As part of its Food Recycling and Meal
Distribution programs, the Kitchen re-prepares surplus food from
area food service businesses to provide meals to community
agencies throughout the DC metropolitan area. DCCK
recovers close to 3,000 lbs. of food a day while providing
nearly 4,000 meals a day to more than 110 community
partnerships.
DC Central Kitchen offers a Culinary Job Training program for unemployed men and women who are either homeless or receiving public assistance. This program teaches a marketable skill, instills confidence, raises self-determination, and reveals hidden talents that ultimately lead to obtaining and retaining jobs at live-able wages. Since 1990, there have been more than 450 graduates from the Culinary Job Training program.
Fresh Start Catering is a full-service catering project that provides quality, cost-effective catering to local businesses, government, local non-profits and friends while offering employment and further training opportunities for graduates of our Culinary Job Training program.
The Contract Foods program, another revenue generating business at DCCK, offers planned menus to our partner agencies that have specific needs, and provides employment opportunities and further training for graduates of our Culinary Job Training program.
Through First Helping, an outreach collaboration with multiple community partners, the Kitchen provides street-level meal services, referral, and counseling services to people who are homeless in Washington, DC. In addition, First Helping assists the business community in understanding and addressing core issues of homelessness.
The Campus Kitchens Project is a leadership development project that brings colleges and universities together with student volunteers, on-campus dining service professionals, and community organizers to combat hunger in cities across the United States. This ultimate partnership, utilizes already existing resources to form new community kitchens while providing a unique service leadership opportunity for young Americans. Since opening the pilot Campus Kitchen at Saint Louis University in October 2002, five more locations are active at Dillard University in New Orleans, Northwestern University outside of Chicago, Loyola College in Baltimore, Marquette University in Milwaukee, and Augsberg College in Minneapolis.
DCCK also operates Kitchens INC (In National Cooperation), a network dedicated to the exchange of information for community based training kitchens, their clients, and their partners. DCCK has helped to replicate the community kitchen model in more than 60 communities throughout the country.
Volunteering is an integral part of our operations. Up to 20 volunteers can be accommodated each morning from 9am to 12pm. Morning and evening volunteer opportunities are also available with First Helping.