Chef Rich Francis revives Indigenous culinary traditions
Rich Francis, owner of Seventh Fire Hospitality Group in Six Nations in Ontario and Alberta,Ā never set out to be a chef, but leveraged his time on Top Chef Canada to launch a prominent culinary career. Francis focuses on the precolonial culinary traditions of Indigenous peoples, but there are limits on what heās able to do. āMost of my work is in First Nations communities,ā Francis told Prof. Karl Moore in an interview for The Globe and Mail. āPartially because itās illegal to do what Iām doing using Indigenous products. For example, thereās nowhere in Canada where you can use a beluga whale. We canāt profit from it. By doing these dinners, Iām forced to go, ironically, to Treaty or Indigenous lands, where we were starved in the first place, because it gives me a sanctuary and the freedom to do what I need to do.ā
Illustration by Chief Lady Bird, The Globe and Mail
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