In honor of Black History Month, we are lifting up and celebrating Black innovators that have directly impacted the work we do as a coalition at the nexus of nutrition and health for people with critical illnesses.
For most of our agencies across the country, food safety and the ability to keep preservative-free, scratch-made meals frozen is a huge priority for our clients, who are often immune-compromised.
Frederick McKinley Jones, a prolific early 20th century Black inventor, invented the Thermo King in the early 1940s— the first automatic refrigeration system for trucks that still powers many of our refrigerated vans and trucks today. Jones and his Thermo King invention helped to revolutionize the refrigeration and grocery industries. Grocery chains were able to transfer perishable products that previously could only have been shipped as canned goods. As a result, the frozen food industry was born! In honor of his tremendous achievements as an inventor, he was posthumously awarded the National Medal of Technology. Jones was the first Black inventor to ever receive such an honor. We thank him for the ability to deliver delicious meals safely to our clients in communities across the country.
Every day, our clients depend on the services of Registered Dietitian Nutritionists to help them manage their illness through the power of nutrition. This Black History Month, we’re spotlighting two dynamic women who broke barriers in the field of dietetics. First,
Gladys Kidd Jennings, R.D., is a groundbreaking nutritionist who helped change how communities experience food and nutrition. She has won numerous awards for her pioneering work in the field of nutrition and dietetics. In the 1960s, she was one of the first to examine the socioeconomic factors affecting nutritional health in Black communities.
Flemmie Pansy Kittrell was the first African American woman to receive a doctorate in nutrition. Dr. Kittrell used her education background to change home economics and nutrition, shaping how the fields utilized scientific research and evidence to interact within a local and global context.
We recognize the advocacy and resilience of Black leaders – like those we featured above and so many others – who pioneered the cause of food is medicine and whose innovation have made our service possible. Today and every day, we stand on their shoulders.
