MANCHESTER – The New Hampshire Food Bank’s Recipe for Success – the Culinary Job Training Program – has become the first such effort in New Hampshire to receive approval from the American Culinary Federation Education Foundation (ACFEF).

It is the eighth program in the country to be granted this distinction.

“The accreditation comes at an exciting time as Certified Executive Chef (CEC) Bradley Labarre, our new Executive Chef and Program Manager for the Recipe for Success – Culinary Job Training Program, continues to expand our culinary efforts to help those in need and ultimately to make a positive impact on our goal of eliminating food insecurity in New Hampshire,” said Eileen Liponis, Executive Director, New Hampshire Food Bank

The New Hampshire Food Bank’s Recipe for Success – Culinary Job Training Program empowers people suffering financial hardship to learn new skills, enabling them to become more self-sufficient and to improve their quality of life.

The eight-week course works with thousands of individuals each year, helping students gain the skills and experience necessary to seek employment in the food service industry.

Through the Recipe for Success – Culinary Job Training Program, the New Hampshire Food Bank provides more than 500 meals per day to five Boys & Girls Clubs in the surrounding areas, and produces meals in bulk to be frozen for use by 31 other partner

agencies.

“We are extremely honored to receive this distinction from the American Culinary Federation, as it validates our culinary job training program for meeting the highest industry standards,” Labarre said.

“Culinary job training programs are becoming increasingly competitive as the food service industry evolves, making ACFEF-approval more valuable than ever. With this accreditation, we will be able to increase our program’s marketability, while ensuring participants are equipped with the skills and knowledge necessary to seek employment in the food service industry.”

In 2021, the New Hampshire Food Bank distributed more than 17 million pounds of non-perishable food to more than 400 nonprofit food agencies in all corners of New Hampshire.

The New Hampshire Food Bank expects to continue increasing food distribution to meet the need.

The New Hampshire Food Bank, a program of Catholic Charities New Hampshire, has been working to relieve hunger in the Granite State since 1984.

The New Hampshire Food Bank receives no federal or state funding for food distribution.

For more information or to make a donation, visit www.nhfoodbank.org. The Food Bank is also on major social media sites.