From left, Dean and Director Carol Lewis, Professor Meriam Karlsson, and UAF's new Executive Chef Natalie Janicka pause in front of a row of corn at the Fairbanks Experiment Farm.
SNRAS welcomes UAF's new executive chef, Natalie Janicka. Raised in California, she has been in Alaska for sixteen years. Her most recent position was chef at the Snow City Cafe in Anchorage.
Janicka shows strong support for local food and will be exploring the possibilities for incorporating some Alaska-grown foods into the menus on campus. "It's wide open," she said. "There is tremendous potential."
At Snow City, Janicka included local foods on the menu, which was met with great acclaim by the clientele. "People really want what's around them," Janicka said.
To familiarize Janicka with SNRAS and the Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, Dean and Director Carol Lewis and Professor Meriam Karlsson gave her a tour of the Fairbanks Experiment Farm Aug. 11. Viewing the potatoes, corn, kale, berries, and other bountiful crops, Janicka was duly impressed. "It's amazing the variety of vegetables and fruits you have going here," she said. "It's really exciting to see the potential and the possibilities."
While the farm can't supply the food demands of Nana Management Services, Janicka's employer and the operator of dining services at UAF, Lewis wanted her to see what foods can be grown in Fairbanks. "If this is adopted by local producers this is the variety you can expect," Lewis said.
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