Farming for Health Podcast #11: Chef Kim Sutherland

Farming for Health Podcast #11: Chef Kim Sutherland

Chef Kim is known for how she guides and empowers Mind Full Leadership in the food and beverage industry—and, in this podcast, she shares her unique journey with Dr. Amy Sapola.

Although many chefs nostalgically remember stories about learning to love cooking while watching and helping their grandmothers, not Chef Kim. After high school, she attended a university for a year, studying to become a sports trainer. She quickly realized, though, that she didn’t want to be a university student. 

She therefore talked to her high school guidance counselor who recommended—to Kim’s great surprise—culinary school. When Kim asked why, the counselor told her it would be fun and likely something she’d be good at doing. Two things convinced Kim to give it a try:

  1. Monica Geller on the television show Friends was a chef, which made it a cool thing to do.
  2. Kim thought that, if she could cook for a boyfriend, she’d have a boyfriend.

She discovered that she loved the adrenaline in a chef’s kitchen and the camaraderie that exists. So, twenty-five years later, Kim is still in the industry! Her story, though, still had more twists and turns. She studied yoga because she wanted to get better at the positions. Falling in love with the ancient practice, she started to share info about yoga and its benefits to other people.

Now mix in one more ingredient to Kim’s story: the world-class chocolate chip cookies she makes. She considers those cookies to be her love language and currency, and she started to wonder what life would be like if someone would pause while eating that cookie. If they would just relax during this experience, how would that change their day?

This caused Kim to realize how people often simply shove food into their mouths without even being aware of the flavors—which led her experiences as a corporate chef and a yoga and meditation practitioner to merge into the concept of teaching mindfulness. World-class culinary teams that she has guided and empowered include those for the World Figure Skating Championships, MLS All Star Soccer Game, CHL Memorial Cup, and Canadian Scouts Jamboree. 

You can listen to the rest of her story in her own words in our Farming for Health podcast Episode 11.


Past Episodes of our Farming for Health Podcast

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