I’m a chef. Here’s why I’m lobbying on climate change.

Award-winning chef, TV personality and author JJ Johnson unpacks why culinary leaders should engage on climate change.

I’m JJ Johnson. Some of you might know me as the founder of FIELDTRIP, the community-focused rice bowl shop based in New York, which expanded internationally this week with our new Atlantis Paradise Island location in the Bahamas! Or maybe you’ve caught my show on CLEO TV, “Just Eats with JJ,” or have seen the cookbook I published last fall, “The Simple Art of Rice.” Follow Chef JJ Johnson on Instagram @chefjj and visit chefjj.co. to learn more!

You might be wondering why a chef is guest-writing a food policy article. But in recent years, the role of chefs has expanded well beyond the walls of the kitchen. The way I see it, I have a responsibility to serve not just the guests in my restaurants – but the community too, from my team and the purveyors and farmers I work with to the next generation of culinary talent and so on. I’m also a father, and my kids and my wife are at the heart of my community.

Each day, I see the direct impact of climate change on each of the groups that make up my community. That’s why I am calling on Congress to take much more action on climate change.

There are so many reasons why this is an important issue, but I’ll speak to it from my perspective as a chef. Climate change has already impacted the food and restaurant industry so profoundly that earlier this year the James Beard Foundation launched the Climate Solutions for Restaurant Survival campaign, which I’m proud to be a part of. The campaign works with chefs from across the country to help policymakers understand the economic impact of climate change on independent restaurants and the people we employ. For example, the campaign recently brought chefs to Washington, D.C. to meet with policymakers and organized a letter from nearly 600 chefs in all 50 states telling Congress to protect important Inflation Reduction Act funding that fights climate change and helps the farmers that supply us.

Think about the rice: I purchase around 5,000 pounds of rice every month for my growing restaurant brand, so I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about this ingredient. (I even wrote a whole book about it.) This global staple – can you imagine a world without rice? – is a good example of why it’s important for chefs to think about climate change. Many of our most prized ingredients are both threatened by and, in some cases, are part of the solution to tackling climate change. There’s been research, for example, showing we could slash methane emissions if we stopped growing rice, but it’s one of the most important foods on every continent

It’s not just culturally important, it’s one of the biggest sources of calories for billions of people. What if instead we changed how we grow rice? We could cut methane emissions by curbing flooding or by adding fish, ducks or crawfish into the production system.

Of course, rising temperatures will also threaten rice production, leading to higher costs and food insecurity. Rice is just one small but crucial ingredient that’s potentially part of the climate solution, while also being threatened by climate change.

Embrace seasonality: Advocating for seasonality and natural availability is another way chefs and restaurateurs can engage in the climate conversation. We’ve got to stop manipulating the climate to support the on-demand consumption of foods, which has become a short-sighted standard in this country. Just because we’ve figured out how to grow, sell and buy peaches in the winter doesn’t mean we should. The negative impact of forcing this gorgeous fruit to grow out of season, or shipping them halfway around the world so they’re available in December, is massive. And for what? They don’t even taste good out of season!

We’re already seeing the real impact of rising temperatures. In Northeast Pennsylvania where I grew up, the water levels in the Delaware River are extremely low due to the heat and for this reason, trout season was essentially skipped this year. In mid June, I was in Aspen cooking at a few dinners (fancy, I know) and it was 90 degrees! That’s not right. And ramp season, a short window for foraging so-called wild leeks once celebrated as the unofficial start of spring, barely existsanymore. We’re losing access to some incredibly meaningful ingredients because it’s too hot.

Consider the economic impact: Climate change is already imposing a significant cost to the food industry and consumers. Rising temperatures, shifts in agricultural patterns and extreme weather events such as floods, drought and wildfires are driving up costs for an already vulnerable industry and undermining our ability to meet consumers’ expectations for high-quality meals at all price points. Expensive ingredients trigger higher price points on menus. Hiked up prices increase the cost of living – but the industry can’t afford the salaries to match it. It’s a vicious, never ending cycle. Without some sense of stability in food costs, we don’t stand a chance.

The food chain’s carbon footprint: The way our country’s food supply-chain has been allowed to operate is out of control. We have to stop and slow down. Like I said before, we really don’t need peaches in the winter. Just think about the carbon footprint caused by shipping all this food.

In 2023 alone, the U.S. imported $2.7 billion worth of tomatoes from Mexico. Think about that: $2.7 billion in tomatoes? What’s wrong with Jersey tomatoes? Let’s support our local farmers and eat them at their prime in the summer. Like peaches, tomatoes are terrible out of season, too!

I source as much as I can locally. In addition to reducing the carbon footprint of the supply chain, this approach has allowed me to create a broader and stronger community within my own food system.

A chef’s call to action: Washington must do more to support local and regional food systems and seasonal eating. We also need to incentivize regenerative farming practices. In the short-term, Congress must protect the $20 billion in conservation funding in the farm bill that’s specifically aimed at supporting more climate-friendly agricultural practices – a hot topic right now.

And to my fellow chefs: I’d like to see us stop developing menus that disregard seasonality. We would never want to eat flavorless traditionally summer veggies in the winter, so let’s show our guests why eating seasonally matters and how delicious it is.

Chefs, farmers, and food purveyors should educate consumers and lead the way on intentional eating, to help connect the dots between climate change and the ingredients we love. That’s why I’m speaking out on this – it’s why I’ll meet with any lawmaker who wants to work on these issues, and I’ll cook something delicious for them, too.

The Simple Art of Rice is a celebration of rice and the many cultures in which this life-giving grain takes pride of place at the center of every table. The recipes are influenced by these global flavors from Asia to Europe, Africa to the Americas, and feature many of the world's favorite dishes. With Danica Novgorodoff, award-winning author Chef JJ Johnson takes readers on an informative and exciting culinary adventure that will help anyone master the art of cooking rice.