ScratchWorks

Big News! ✨

We’re thrilled to share that ScratchWorks Advisory Committee member Bertrand Weber has been named the Golden Foodservice Director of the Year at the 2025 FAME Awards! 🏆👏

Bertrand, who leads Culinary & Wellness Services at Minneapolis Public Schools, has long been a champion of scratch cooking, student well-being, and raising industry standards. This award—the highest honor given by the Foodservice Achievement Management Excellence (FAME) Awards—recognizes his visionary leadership, dedication to community impact, and commitment to innovation in school meals.

🎉 Congratulations, Bertrand! Your work continues to inspire us all.

We’re excited to introduce Bertrand Weber as the next member of the ScratchWorks Advisory Committee!

With over 40 years of experience in hospitality and school food service, Bertrand has been a driving force in transforming school nutrition. After managing luxury hotels and resorts, Bertrand’s passion for children's health and the environment led him to join Hopkins School District in Minnesota in 2003. There, he spearheaded initiatives like one of the state's first Farm to School programs, earning national recognition.

Since 2012, Bertrand has served as the Director of Culinary & Wellness Services for Minneapolis Public Schools, where he has introduced Market Cart Salad Bars, expanded scratch cooking to 52 schools, and championed forward-thinking programs like the Plant Protein/Plant Forward Initiative and the True Food No Waste Action Plan. His leadership has placed MPS at the forefront of the Farm to School movement, partnering with over 14 local farms and launching MN Thursday, a meal initiative featuring 100% locally sourced ingredients.

Bertrand is a respected leader in school food reform, serving on advisory boards and councils, including IFMA K-12 Advisory Council, the Chef Ann Foundation Lunch Box, and the National Farm to School Network. His progressive vision continues to inspire change in school nutrition nationwide.

📣 We're thrilled to introduce Anneliese, a member of our Advisory Committee! With extensive experience in food service and finance, Anneliese is passionate about transforming our food system. She holds a Master’s in Food Studies from New York University, focusing on food systems and city food policy.

Anneliese has led impactful initiatives, including redefining the urban school meal experience in Austin, Texas, through innovative programs like breakfast in the classroom, food trucks, plant-forward menus, and sustainable practices.

At Chef Ann Foundation, she guided school districts nationwide in shifting to scratch-cooking operations. Now, as the Executive Director for Food & Nutrition at Boston Public Schools, Anneliese is bringing scratch cooking with a focus on values-based procurement to the nation’s oldest public school system. Welcome, Anneliese! 🌱

Every kid should have a nutritious, free, scratch-cooked meal during the school day. Thanks to a visionary nutrition director & supportive administration, Auburn Public Schools prove we can do it while prioritizing local produce & teaching kids how to grow food. An amazing model!