Latest news with #Archambault
Forbes
15-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
How La Tablee Des Chefs Is Turning Waste Into Meals
Jean-François Archambault, Founder of La Tablée des Chefs In Canada, a paradox exists. While millions struggle to access fresh, nutritious food, perfectly good meals are discarded by restaurants, hotels, and catering companies. Food banks operate under immense strain, often lacking quality ingredients. At the same time, an invisible barrier—fear of litigation—prevents many food providers from donating surplus meals. But where others saw an intractable problem, Jean-François Archambault saw an opportunity. During his decade in hotel management, he wrestled with an uncomfortable truth: vast amounts of food were going to waste while communities went hungry. Reflecting on the values instilled in him through his family's community work, he knew he couldn't stand by idly. In 2004, he walked away from his career at the prestigious Fairmont Queen Elizabeth in Montreal and founded La Tablée des Chefs—a game-changing organization that connects the food industry to the fight against hunger. 'I was successful,' Archambault recalls, 'but it was like, at the end of the day, I was taking off that suit, putting it back in the closet, and then being Jean-François at home, and I hated that. I needed to wake up and feel I was whole.' The leap wasn't easy—but it was fueled by belief and mentorship. 'That sense of purpose came to me very strongly when I met my wife—and she gave me confidence,' he shares. 'Having her by my side and believing in me really helped. And then some key business people, one in particular who became a mentor—she was the Executive VP of HR at National Bank of Canada—really pushed me to do something.' He recalls preparing to hire La Tablée's first employee after raising $150,000, only to have a moment of clarity over breakfast with his mentor. 'I told her I stopped the hiring process,' he says. 'She asked why, and I said, 'Because I'm going to do it. Nobody else is better than me to do that.' That's where it all started.' Archambault's first challenge was to dismantle a system built on fear. Working alongside legal experts, he uncovered an overlooked solution: Good Samaritan laws. These laws protect food providers from liability when donating food in good faith. By educating businesses and industry leaders on these protections, he flipped the script, shifting mindsets from risk aversion to social impact. In provinces like Alberta, vague food safety regulations still prevent large quantities of safe, untouched food from being recovered. Archambault is working with pro bono legal partners to change that. 'We could double the amount of food that we recover if we clarify the definition of served food,' he says. Next, he forged powerful partnerships with industry heavyweights, such as Montreal's Bell Centre, home to the Canadiens hockey team. His vision: a streamlined system where surplus food is retrieved, repurposed, and distributed to those in need—at scale. 'What I really want to do is change the mindset of the industry on looking at food waste—and looking at food that can be recovered that is not recovered,' he says. 'To really engage in maximizing all the opportunities we have as an industry. I'm talking about the hospitality industry coming together to prioritize this—and getting the industry around to change.' He emphasizes that many workers in the industry already want to help—they've simply lacked a system that makes it possible. 'The industry is not aware that a lot of hotel and convention spaces employees are all for this,' Archambault says. 'But they've been stopping to think it's possible. And I'm here to make that possible.' A key milestone came when Marriott Canada stepped up. 'When we signed the agreement with Marriott Canada, the president at the time said, 'I want this in my 260 hotels,'' Archambault recalls. That really helped accelerate the change. Thanks to that kind of leadership, word spread quickly within the industry. Through these partnerships, La Tablée des Chefs has built an operational backbone that makes food recovery seamless for hospitality teams. Using a data-driven platform, the organization coordinates surplus food collection and meal distribution with precision. Restaurants, hotels, and caterers donate prepared meals, which are then labeled, packaged, and delivered to food banks and shelters based on real-time demand. The result? A sustainable, systemic solution to food insecurity—one that empowers the industry to act with both efficiency and compassion. 'We have 400 hotels or venues doing this across the country and serving 3 million meals annually,' he explains. La Tablée des Chefs—a game-changing organization that connects the food industry to the fight ... More against hunger But Archambault knew that simply providing meals wasn't enough. To truly address food insecurity, he needed to empower communities to feed themselves. Enter La Tablée des Chefs' culinary training programs. Through initiatives like Kitchen Brigades and Cook Up Your Future, the organization is teaching vulnerable youth how to prepare high-quality, low-cost meals—building self-sufficiency where it's needed most. From schools and youth centers to juvenile detention facilities, their culinary education initiatives are equipping young people with essential life skills—and a pathway to a brighter future. 'We're in more than 350 public high schools with chefs coming into schools every day,' says Archambault. 'We've educated over 75,000 youth through food education and food literacy.' In 2018, the Quebec government made a major investment in the program, allowing it to scale even further. La Tablée des Chefs now runs an e-learning platform and a culinary school, ensuring that its impact reaches far beyond the kitchen. La Tablée des Chefs' culinary training programs In its first 15 years, La Tablée des Chefs has provided over 20 million meals to food-insecure communities, partnered with more than 400 hotels and venues across Canada, and trained young people in more than 350 public high schools and foster care programs across seven provinces. But Archambault's ambition doesn't stop at Canada's borders. Today, the model is being tested in France, with plans to expand into culinary schools across Canada. By fostering a new generation of socially conscious chefs, La Tablée des Chefs is proving that food is more than just sustenance—it's a vehicle for social change. That impact was powerfully demonstrated at the President's Cup PGA tournament at the Royal Montreal Golf Club.'There were 30 small kitchens on the course feeding tens of thousands of people,' Archambault recalls. 'We partnered with Proof of the Pudding, the PGA's caterer, and recovered 22 tons of food that fed over 120,000 people in six days.' The quality of the food, he says, is often what surprises people most.'We opened one aluminum container, and it was these lamb chops—pink, perfect,' he says. 'Would you eat that tomorrow? Absolutely. That's the kind of dignity this brings.' In its first 15 years, La Tablée des Chefs has provided over 20 million meals to food-insecure ... More communities. Jean-François Archambault's work isn't just about feeding people—it's about transforming the way we think about food. It's about reimagining a food system where waste is no longer the norm, where chefs wield their expertise as a force for good, and where communities are empowered to take control of their own nutrition. 'We are the missing link into making that food accessible to the front line,' he says. 'And that's really what I want to continue to do.' This is what happens when passion meets purpose. And this is how one man—and a growing movement of compassionate chefs and business leaders—are rewriting the future of food in Canada and beyond.
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Energy Transfer board chair says he sought settlement with Standing Rock in 2016
Kelcy Warren, executive chairman of Energy Transfer, the company that developed the Dakota Access Pipeline, talks about pipeline security during the Williston Basin Petroleum Conference at the Bismarck Event Center in May 2021. (Mike McCleary/Bismarck Tribune) Energy Transfer Executive Chairman Kelcy Warren claimed in court testimony he traveled to North Dakota in December 2016 to discuss a settlement with then-tribal chair David Archambault II to end protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline. 'I said, 'David, I'm here to make a deal with you,'' Warren said in a video deposition shown to jurors last week during a trial involving Energy Transfer and Greenpeace. ''What do you want? Money? Land?'' Warren, who was CEO of Energy Transfer at the time, said he was willing to give the tribe a ranch that the company had purchased near part of the pipeline construction site in North Dakota. Energy Transfer just months prior had bought Cannonball Ranch, which is north of Standing Rock in an area that became the center of the anti-pipeline demonstrations. Warren said he also offered to build a new school on the reservation. Archambault in a Monday statement to the North Dakota Monitor said his memory of his meeting with Warren is very different. Archambault did not appear as a witness during the trial. 'From my perspective, the purpose of the meeting was not to negotiate a settlement,' Archambault wrote. Archambault said he met with Warren because he was concerned about growing violence at the protests. 'Given the growing danger, I felt it was necessary to have a direct conversation to discuss de-escalation,' he wrote. Archambault said that oil and gas magnate Harold Hamm and then-Quapaw Nation chair John Berrey helped arrange his meeting with Warren. He said he told Warren at the meeting that he was not there to end the protests. 'He asked what it would take to stop the movement, and I explained that it was no longer in my control,' Archambault said. 'The fight against the pipeline had become much bigger than Standing Rock; it was about Indigenous rights and the long history of injustice faced by our people.' According to Archambault, Warren told him if he had been aware of the history of how infrastructure projects have affected the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe then 'we might not be in this situation.' Archambault said in the statement that more than a year before his meeting with Warren, he met with another Energy Transfer executive, Joey Mahmoud, to relay his concerns about the Dakota Access Pipeline. Mahmoud was in charge of the project for Energy Transfer. 'At that time, I made it clear that the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe would resist the pipeline due to the historical and ongoing harm caused by infrastructure projects on Indigenous lands,' Archambault wrote. Archambault said Mahmoud told him that Energy Transfer is used to dealing with protests. 'I let him know I thought this was going to be different,' Archambault wrote. Greenpeace case in hands of jury as Energy Transfer makes case for $800 million in damages Warren in his video deposition speculated that Archambault rejected his offer to settle because he had already made a separate deal with a third party. Warren said he suspects someone had paid money to the tribe and that Earthjustice, an environmental law group, was 'the carrier of that money.' 'It was very clear to me he had struck a deal with the devil,' Warren said of Archambault. Warren acknowledged that he did not have concrete evidence that the deal took place. 'Warren has no evidence of it because it never happened,' Jan Hasselman, a senior attorney for Earthjustice who previously represented the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, said in a statement to the Monitor. Archambault said that his meeting with Warren 'ended with an understanding that neither side would change course.' 'Energy Transfer would attempt to push the pipeline through, and we would continue to resist,' he wrote. More Dakota Access Pipeline coverage Warren's deposition came as part of Energy Transfer's lawsuit against Greenpeace over its involvement in protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline in 2016 and 2017. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe started the protests to oppose the project, which it states is a pollution threat to its water and a violation of Native sovereignty. Greenpeace was one of many organizations present at the demonstrations. In his testimony, Warren said that he was not privy to the day-to-day operations of Energy Transfer at the time of the protests. He said that he had no personal knowledge of Greenpeace's involvement in the demonstrations, and that his legal staff were heading up the lawsuit against the environmental group. Warren said that it was his understanding that the purpose of the lawsuit was to push back against an organized effort to harm the company, which he said included 'defamation' and 'paid protesters.' 'I did feel strongly that we've got to stand up for ourselves,' Warren said. Energy Transfer alleges Greenpeace coordinated illegal attacks against the pipeline that cost the company hundreds of millions of dollars. Greenpeace denies the claims. The lawsuit, originally filed in 2019, went to trial in Mandan in late February. The parties presented their closing arguments on Monday, though the jury has yet to render a verdict. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Boston Globe
07-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Creating a dramatic dining room inspired by candlelit dinners
2 The sideboard from Frontgate, which is modeled after an 18th-century French antique, has a honed marble top that makes it ideal for serving. 'The creamy finish brightens the space,' Archambault says. 'That's also why I chose a light rug.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 3 The Hollywood Regency-style mirror came out of Archambault's childhood home and the Currey & Company porcelain lamps were in her living room in the city. 'The mirror reflects sunlight from the windows during the day,' she says. 4 The vintage travel poster that Archambault found at Details, Inc. in Harwich Port reminds the couple of their Monte Carlo, Monaco, honeymoon. 5 Peter Dunham sisal grass-cloth wallpaper with a large-scale block-printed paisley pattern wraps the room. 'I love how the texture juxtaposes the high-gloss ceiling,' the designer says. 6 For a hint of playfulness, Archambault opted for two brass-lotus pendant lights by Jamie Young Co., rather than a single chandelier. 'The design directs light downward, which lends a more intimate feel than a light that diffuses outward,' she explains. Marni Elyse Katz is a contributing editor to the Globe Magazine. Follow her on Instagram
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Home prices rise 14% in year as more older buyers selling homes
Feb. 4—Realtor Moe Archambault said he's seeing home sellers skewing older in early 2025. "What I'm finding is there are more, I guess, you would call Baby Boomers and seniors," said Archambault, principal of Moe Marketing Realty Group in Laconia. "They're afraid to lose out on this elevated-priced market to get something else to better suit their needs as they get older," he said. "They've got lots of equity in their houses." Prices continue to rise year-over year, with January's median statewide price of $507,350 up 14% higher than a year earlier. The 657 single-family homes that closed in January were nine fewer than in January 2024, according to figures from the New Hampshire Realtors. Bedford's median jumped 34% to $820,000 while Hooksett's dropped 19% to just over a half-million dollars. Manchester's median price of nearly $430,000 was 6% higher than a year ago. Goffstown's median price jumped 47% to $567,000. Monthly totals can vary greatly from month to month, so the real estate market focuses on year-over-year comparisons. Coos County saw a record median price of $312,000 — — a 61% jump based on 21 homes sold both last month and in January 2024. "I'm still seeing bidding wars" on homes priced at less than $400,000, Archambault said. Merrimack's median price dropped $40,000 to $500,000 while Nashua's median grew by 13% to $513,750. Londonderry ($602,000 median) and Derry ($522,500) both saw more than 4% gains.
Yahoo
27-01-2025
- Yahoo
Leader of prescription fraud ring sentenced to 15 years in Cherokee County
CHEROKEE COUNTY, Ga. - A major RICO case involving six defendants has been closed in Cherokee County, with the final guilty plea entered on Jan. 15. District Attorney Susan K. Treadaway announced the resolution, which stems from a scheme involving fraudulent prescriptions for controlled substances using a stolen prescription pad. The operation, led by Leslie Joann Archambault, 49, involved obtaining and filling fraudulent prescriptions for medications such as Adderall, Alprazolam, Hydrocodone, Phentermine, and Tramadol. Archambault was sentenced to 15 years, with the first three years to be served in prison and the remaining 12 years on probation. The backstory The scheme came to light in September 2022 when a Roswell medical practice discovered Archambault, a former employee, was fraudulently filling prescriptions using a doctor's credentials. Investigators determined Archambault had stolen prescription pads from her former workplace and used them to write prescriptions for herself and her co-conspirators. Prescriptions were filled at multiple pharmacies across Cherokee County, with law enforcement linking the fraudulent activity to Archambault and her associates. What we know The six defendants pleaded guilty on different dates, with their sentences reflecting their roles in the enterprise: Leslie Joann Archambault, 49: Guilty plea on January 26, 2023, to violation of the RICO Act; sentenced to 15 years (three in prison, 12 on probation). Gina Marie Moson, 49: Guilty plea on January 15, 2025, to violation of the RICO Act; sentenced to two years on probation. Jeffrey Moson, 46: Guilty plea on December 6, 2024, to violation of the RICO Act; sentenced to three years on probation. Jessica Rose Weaver, 38: Guilty plea on April 19, 2023, to violation of the RICO Act; sentenced to three years on probation. Cathy Rebecca Hudson, 41: Guilty plea on June 15, 2023, to violation of the RICO Act; sentenced to two years on probation. Bryan Omae Chirangu, 35: Guilty plea on December 13, 2022, to fraud/theft in obtaining a controlled substance and possession of a Schedule IV controlled substance; sentenced to five years on probation. What they're saying "By utilizing the RICO Act, we could demonstrate each co-conspirator's specific actions while clearly showing that one defendant was the mastermind behind the enterprise," said District Attorney Treadaway. The case was investigated by the Cherokee Multi Agency Narcotics Squad, with assistance from the Holly Springs Police Department. It was prosecuted by Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney Damion Overstreet, part of the Gang and Organized Crime Unit in the Blue Ridge Judicial Circuit. Law enforcement and the District Attorney's Office reaffirmed their commitment to combatting all forms of organized crime in Cherokee County.
