Hosted in honor of World Food Day, the competition will feature cooking videos from renowned chefs shared across Rise Against Hunger’s social media channels to generate awareness about global hunger.
RALEIGH, N.C., Oct. 7, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — Rise Against Hunger, the international nonprofit organization, is bringing together chefs across the globe, from Texas, Alabama, the Philippines and Italy, to compete in its fourth annual It Starts With a Meal™️ Chef Showdown. Hosted on social media from October 7-11, 2024, the virtual cooking competition commemorates World Food Day, the holiday established by the United Nations and recognized annually on October 16.
The five chef competitors and teams have created dishes inspired by the countries and regions where Rise Against Hunger works to alleviate hunger. Starting today, October 7, through October 11, these dishes will be highlighted through cooking videos released on Rise Against Hunger’s Instagram and Facebook pages. Each video also addresses global food insecurity and Rise Against Hunger’s mission to drive awareness and action.
This social media campaign will engage the celebrity chefs’ more than 470,000 collective followers and Rise Against Hunger’s 59,000 followers. People will vote by liking, commenting or sharing their favorite video. The chef who receives the highest engagement by October 16, World Food Day, will win the Golden Whisk Award.
The participating chefs are:
- Nacho Aguirre and Susana Mijares — Husband and wife duo Nacho and Susana are owners of the beloved Délice Chocolatier & Patisserie in San Antonio, Texas. They are also Food Network stars, with Nacho competing in the “Spring Baking Championship” and serving as a judge for “Candy Land,” and Susan winning season 12 of the network’s “Halloween Wars.” They are competing in the Chef Showdown for the third year in a row.
- JR Royol — Hailing from the Philippines and competing in the Chef Showdown for the first time, JR hosts the culinary show “Farm to Table” and won the first season of “Master Chef Philippines.” He also has a special connection to Rise Against Hunger’s work, serving as the chef at Anihan, a restaurant at the Good Food Farm, a working farm and agri-tourism resort operated by Rise Against Hunger Philippines.
- Nicole McLaughlin — From Birmingham, Alabama, Nicole is the reigning 2023 and 2022 champion of the Chef Showdown. Returning to compete for a third-time win, she is the producer and star of Allrecipe’s food series “You Can Cook That.” With over 20 years of experience in the culinary industry, Nicole has been featured on “The Today Show” and has a large Instagram following of over 133,000.
- Michelle Adrillana — From the Philippines, Michelle is a chef, food and beverage consultant, content creator and advocate for Filipino cuisine. She is competing in the Chef Showdown for the third consecutive year.
- Cristina Bowerman — Cristina is a Michelin-star-rated chef at Glass Hostaria in Rome, Italy. With a passion for creating dishes that blend flavors from around the world, she is competing in the Chef Showdown for the second time.
The It Starts With a Meal™️ Chef Showdown is one of Rise Against Hunger’s signature campaigns, enabling people to engage with the organization’s mission of ending global hunger each year. Last year’s Chef Showdown campaign reached 22.6 million through earned media and social media, and the videos received over 28,960 views and 4,010 engagements.
About Rise Against Hunger
Rise Against Hunger, an international humanitarian organization, is growing a global movement to end hunger by nourishing lives, empowering communities and responding to emergencies. Through a global network based in the U.S. and with six international offices, the organization provides volunteer-packaged meals and other assistance for people facing hunger today. Rise Against Hunger has facilitated volunteer packaging of more than 600 million meals to be distributed to countries around the world. In addition to providing immediate nourishment, the organization works with local leaders to implement sustainable agriculture and income-generating projects that support long-term solutions to food security and empower communities to thrive. To learn more about Rise Against Hunger’s efforts to end hunger worldwide, please visit www.riseagainsthunger.org.
Media Contact
Hannah Payne, Rise Against Hunger, 1 (919) 839-0689 6, [email protected], https://www.riseagainsthunger.org/
SOURCE Rise Against Hunger
