Andres built his name on cookbooks and restaurants like Jaleo and Minibar. But he is also known for flying into disaster and conflict zones with food relief supplies with the organization he co-founded.
Here's what you need to know about the man behind the first ship that brought much-needed food to Gaza during the war.
The restaurateur was born in Spain and left home at the age of 15 to fund his own independence through hospitality work. He went to culinary school, studied under top chefs, and served in the Navy before landing in the United States at age 21. At the time of his National Endowment for the Humanities award, he told the magazine that he had $50 to his name. 2015 medal.
He moved to the capital in 1993 to head up the kitchen at a new restaurant, Jaleo, and helped spark the tapas boom. From that foundation, he launched more than 30 of his restaurants, primarily in the United States, many of which were the most famous in Washington. He won his first James Beard Award in 2003.
He founded World Central Kitchen in 2010 and has long been outspoken on issues of hunger, childhood obesity, agribusiness subsidies, minimum wage, and immigration reform.
I became an American citizen in 2013. He is married to Patricia Fernandez de la Cruz and the couple have three daughters.
When Andres was named one of the world's 100 most influential people in 2018, fellow celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse said that Andres “is a great example of his unique perspective on Spanish food and culture. , an outstanding restaurateur who has shaped the history and direction of American cuisine.” ”
What is World Central Kitchen?
Andres and his partner founded World Central Kitchen after going to feed the people of Haiti, which was devastated by a deadly earthquake.
The charity grew from there, responding to food needs after hurricanes in Houston and Puerto Rico and wildfires in the western United States and Australia. Its employees lived in tents on the U.S.-Mexico border and cooked for refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine.
The organization describes its mission as “first to the front lines and providing fresh meals in response to humanitarian, climate and community crises.”
In 2021, Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos handed Andres $100 million through his annual Courage and Decency Awards.
The nonprofit organization has also faced criticism. Two Bloomberg investigations last year found that Andres put staff and contractors in unsafe situations and that the organization lacked adequate safety, governance and accounting procedures to support its rapid growth. , including not responding appropriately to a certain pattern. Sexual harassment of senior employees. The charity told Bloomberg it has changed its leadership team and instituted new safety measures.
For the mission in Gaza, it is partnering with Open Arms, a Spanish non-profit organization specializing in maritime rescue. Open Arms has worked to save refugees and migrants from drowning in the Mediterranean, deliver aid after earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, and evacuate refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine.
How is he sending ships to get aid to Gaza?
World Central Kitchen sent a ship carrying around 200 tons of food from Cyprus to northern Gaza. A spokesperson for the group said the animals will be inspected by Israeli authorities en route and the extradition is subject to permission from Israeli authorities. The northern part of the territory is suffering from hunger, with reports of children dying from lack of food increasing in recent weeks.
There is no port infrastructure in northern Gaza, but Gaza officials have built a pier using the rubble of bombed buildings in preparation for the arrival of ships, Andres told U.S. lawmakers on Thursday.
Andres told the newspaper that aid will be distributed through the World Central Kitchen's existing network in Gaza, which includes more than 60 kitchens and several warehouses, with many more on the way. He said a warehouse is being built.
The ship is part of a new wave of land, sea and air assistance operations that have taken on new forms in recent weeks.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday that it was the first emergency relief vessel Israel had allowed to reach the Gaza coast in about 18 years. Israel controls both sides of Gaza's coastline and land border. Egypt controls the third. The approved maritime corridor was negotiated last week between Israel and the US, United Arab Emirates, Cyprus and other parties, with World Central Kitchen with Open Arms being the first to use it. .
The United States intends to build a temporary pier and distribute 2 million meals a day to the Gaza Strip by sea, but the Pentagon says construction will take up to 60 days.
A limited number of trucks carrying essential supplies have been allowed to pass over the two land routes since October 21, when Israel and Egypt partially lifted the total siege they had imposed on the enclave since October 9. . Relief groups' ability to distribute supplies within the Strip is limited by Israeli military forces and looting.
The United States and other countries also began airdropping food and water this month.
