Kitchens Collaborating

Fresh from the first three days of the Hormel Foods Culinary Enrichment and Innovation Program (CEIP), Erich Chieca carries more than new recipes in his chef’s toolkit. The culinary veteran, who leads the company’s Culinary Collective, returns with fresh ideas, strengthened relationships and a broader understanding of the foodservice landscape that’s reshaping how America eats.

During the intensive program held in Napa Valley, California, Chieca joined 21 other top chefs leading major foodservice institutions — from university dining halls serving thousands daily, to national restaurant chains stretching across the country. This experience represents just the beginning of Chieca’s journey through a program designed not simply to teach techniques, but to reshape how culinary leaders think about their role in an evolving industry.

This program allowed me to step back and rethink how I work. It helped me dial back into the fundamentals of flavor and taste, reminded me how important it is to take care of myself to avoid burnout, and gave me a new perspective on leadership.
Chef Frank Turchan, executive chef at the University of Michigan

“It’s not only about food. It’s about the business end of food,” Chieca explains. Watching chefs present their creations and offer feedback to classmates created an environment where vulnerability and learning walked hand in hand. For Chieca and the other accomplished chefs, it provided an opportunity to step away from corporate responsibilities. “To actually get your hands busy and work with a group of your peers is an absolute blast. In this business, it’s important to never stop learning.”

Partnership Built on Excellence

Now in its ninth year, the CEIP represents a comprehensive year-long curriculum developed through a unique collaboration between Hormel Foods and the Culinary Institute of America. The program integrates financial acumen with culinary fundamentals, wellness concepts and leadership skills, equipping seasoned professionals to lead with both creative vision and business insight — all made possible by Hormel Foods.

The program’s three modules — Contemporary Flavors and Techniques (Napa, California), Health and Wellness (San Antonio, Texas), and Leadership and Innovation (New York) — blend academic rigor with hands-on experience. Each module challenges participants to explore industry trends, ethical responsibilities and operational efficiency, while building actionable knowledge they can immediately share with their teams.

This year’s Napa program featured explorations into dishes and flavor profiles representing three dynamic regions: the Mediterranean, Southeast Asia and East Asia. The second day challenged participants to create their own menus based on assigned Mediterranean regions, applying newly acquired flavor profiles to familiar techniques.

For chefs managing vast operations, the program provides particular value. University of Michigan Executive Chef Frank Turchan, who oversees nine dining halls serving approximately 27,000 meals daily, found the program transformative when he participated in 2018.

“After being in this industry for over 20 years, you kind of need a reset. This program allowed me to step back and rethink how I work,” Turchan says. “It helped me dial back into the fundamentals of flavor and taste, reminded me how important it is to take care of myself to avoid burnout, and gave me a new perspective on leadership after connecting with top chefs and industry leaders.”

We develop chef-to-chef relationships. When they pick up the phone to call someone on my team and say, ‘Hey, I really need help with this. Help me solve this problem in my operation’ — that’s our sweet spot.
Erich Chieca, team lead of the Hormel Foods Culinary Collective

Relationship building is as valuable as the curriculum. “You want to talk about building relationships in an intimate setting; this is an absolutely fabulous way to do it,” notes Chieca. These connections foster partnerships that enhance operations and drive innovation.

Phyllis Kaplowitz, campus executive chef at Boston College who manages 23 dining establishments with staff from 47 countries, participated in this year’s program. “I haven’t worked on this level with peers like this before. The Napa program was the beginning of a life-changing experience.”

Collaboration Over Competition

With 21 professional chefs sharing a kitchen, you might imagine a clash of egos. The atmosphere, however, had no resemblance to the mean-spirited kitchen competitions often portrayed on television.

“I look at how I want to be treated, so why would I want to treat other people differently?” Chieca explains. The spirit of collaboration displayed among the chefs reflects a generational change in the industry. “There’s been a shift,” he notes, observing how the chefs in attendance — mostly in their thirties and forties — represent a generation that has chosen mentorship over intimidation. Building a workplace based on respect has become essential in an industry grappling with labor shortages and changing workplace expectations. The collaborative approach chefs now embrace creates stronger teams and more sustainable operations.

That spirit of sharing and mentorship on display at the CEIP is at the heart of Chieca’s leadership of the Hormel Foods Culinary Collective. His team’s sole purpose is to understand and help chefs in charge of large foodservice organizations, including university dining halls, healthcare facilities and national restaurant chains.

“We want to be known by other chefs as both product experts and problem solvers,” explains Chieca. “But most importantly, we develop chef-to-chef relationships. When they pick up the phone to call someone on my team and say, ‘Hey, I really need help with this. Help me solve this problem in my operation’ — that’s our sweet spot.”

Chefs must tackle immense logistical challenges while meeting increasingly sophisticated customer expectations. At Michigan, Turchan points out, “Our largest location will do 7,000 meals a day. Chicken tenders alone — we’ll go through 60 to 80 cases in our largest unit during a single three-hour meal period.” To address these demands, campus chefs collaborate with the Foodservice team at Hormel Foods on both education and product innovation. Turchan has worked with the company’s foodservice professionals on specialized training.

For Boston College’s Kaplowitz, the hands-on partnership approach stands out. “The level of communication — coming in and doing tastings and putting the product in front of me and letting me play with it — has been invaluable.”

This type of support has become increasingly important as institutional kitchens grapple with staffing shortages. “Sometimes it starts with a product request,” Chieca explains, “but often it’s broader. We’re brought in to help develop a menu strategy or help brainstorm on how the workflow in a kitchen can become more streamlined.”

Solutions That Work

In an effort to streamline operations, Michigan University’s dining program adopted BACON 1™ Perfectly Cooked Bacon — an industry-standard product from Hormel Foods — leading to notable reductions in labor and prep time. “Before, we would have four speed racks with 20 or more sheet trays full of bacon,” Turchan explains. “Now with the BACON 1™ product, we just have maybe one sheet tray to start. It’s easier to recover if you run out, and there’s much less cleanup.”

“The innovators at Hormel Foods listen,” Turchan added. “When you have a conversation and the other side hears you — that’s hugely important.”

We’re brought in to help develop a menu strategy or help brainstorm on how the workflow in a kitchen can become more streamlined.
Erich Chieca, team lead of the Hormel Foods Culinary Collective

Kaplowitz similarly partnered with the Culinary Collective to add new items to the Boston College menu. “We did a ‘Cluck Cluck Pop Up’ featuring three different fried chicken sandwiches using Hormel’s new FLASH 180™ Sous Vide Chicken, which we now use in all our units.”

Trusted relationships, chef-to-chef collaboration and a focus on practical problem-solving are redefining leadership in foodservice today. Hormel Foods sits at the intersection of this change, supporting its own culinary team while building bridges with chefs and institutions.

Kitchens Collaborating

Partnership Built on Excellence

Collaboration Over Competition

Solutions That Work

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