our story

YOUTH KITCHEN began in 2022 as itsu's Community Kitchen Project. The itsu team are passionate about healthier diets and fresh food so it made sense for them to volunteer to support our nation's teachers with nutrition education. 

News spread fast and we quickly got an overwhelming number of requests for school visits. To keep up with classroom demand we needed a full time teacher & nutritionist.  Kiran joined in April 2023 and thanks to her, itsu volunteers and  Reynolds generous supply of beautiful fresh veg, itsu's Community Kitchen Project grew up... fast.

What if, in the same way we take inspiration from East Asia when creating our eat beautiful food, we look to East Asia's approach to nutrition education ?  Please take a moment to read up about  shokuiku and be amazed and inspired. 

healthier futures

We wanted to do more, and more, and more to help support healthier futures for younger generations.  At the itsu Christmas Board Meeting 2024 it was agreed that in 2025 we would create a dedicated charity whose mission would be to help every child leave school with the nutritional knowledge & practical skills needed to live a healthier life.

YOUTH KITCHEN will fund classes, fresh ingredients, and cooking equipment for students across the U.K. We're starting in primary schools with Year 4 - check out classroom takeovers for more information on our current curriculum.

*Our application for charitable status began in Spring 2025.