Jose Andres: Who is the Spanish chef who founded the NGO whose workers were killed in Israeli attack in Gaza

Founder of WCK, Spanish chef José Andrés declared himself “saddened and saddened” by the loss of some colleagues, whom he defined as “angels”.and called on the Israeli government to end “indiscriminate killing” in Gaza.

“You have to stop restricting humanitarian aid, stop killing civilians and aid workers, and stop using food as a weapon,” he said on his X account.

But who is Jose Andres and how has his NGO become synonymous with food and relief for the most vulnerable?

Andrés founded WCK in 2010 after traveling to Haiti following the 2010 earthquake and contributing to the care of those affected.

Since then, his project has not stopped growing and, although previously it focused on long-term food programs, it now focuses on providing quality food to populations in areas affected by disasters of various nature in different parts of the world.

so, Andres and his colleagues were in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria in 2017 and Ukraine after the Russian invasion in 2022., Now they were trying to de-escalate the situation in Gaza, where the United Nations has warned of the threat of famine among Palestinians in the context of Israel’s war against Hamas.

His colleagues have highlighted that the key to WCK’s success is Andrés’s quick response ability and his sensitivity to understanding people’s needs.

Mexican chef Carla Hoyos, who is part of the WCK team, recalled that one of the first things Andrés does when he arrives at a location is to contact local chefs and seek their cooperation to find out who he needs there. Like food.

“Jose will say he likes paella, but I’m not going to Ukraine to give them paella. You have to know what food makes them feel good,” Hoyos explained in an interview with the BBC in 2023.

Before starting WCK, Andrés had already become one of the world’s most renowned and successful chefs.

Born in Asturias, in the north of Spain, his family moved to Barcelona when he was a child, where he grew up focusing on home-cooked dishes where, according to his own story, there was not enough money.

“My parents had to feed four children, so good fresh food was often cooked.”

In 1988, Andrés joined renowned Catalan chef Ferran Adrià at his famous restaurant El Bulli. Adria became his mentor and he became the great chef he is today.

“Jose has a special talent for gastronomy”Adria said about him.

In 1991, he moved to the United States, where, together with his partners, he opened several restaurants that soon became standards, such as The Bazaar and Zaytinya, and won some of the most notable awards in the culinary world.

In 2013, after more than two decades of immigrating, he acquired US citizenship.

In Washington DC he met Chef Robert Egger, founder of DC Central Kitchen, a charity dedicated to feeding the most marginalized, such as former prisoners, in the US capital.

Inspired by Egger and his work, Andres began his own philanthropic action through World Central Kitchen, which brought him even greater fame and earned him numerous accolades from colleagues and co-workers.

For Andres, chefs have “one of the greatest responsibilities in the world.”

“We touch everything: agriculture, labor, immigration, environment, diplomacy, national security. He once said, If we don’t use our voices to say something, to help make the world a better place, then why are we here?

According to his team, it is this spirit that has driven WCK’s action over the years and which is why former United States President Barack Obama awarded him the National Humanities Medal in 2015.

Time magazine featured him on one of its covers and Andrés was even proposed as a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize.

In 2019, one of his employees in New York reported him for not paying him the amount stipulated in law for overtime. He acknowledged “mistakes” in the way he paid his employees, with some receiving more and some less than they expected, but promised to correct them.

According to Swedish-Ethiopian chef and television star, Marcus Samuelsson, Andrés “has the ability to make others feel visible wherever he goes.” You can do this in multiple languages. “He can do this even in languages ​​he doesn’t speak, because he has an emotional connection with people.”

His organization was trying to carry out its normal work under the difficult conditions in which it is working in Gaza. Following the attack, which took the lives of seven of his colleagues, Andrés joined the voices condemning Israel’s restrictions on the delivery of humanitarian aid to Palestinians.

However, in the past he has defended his government’s actions. Last October he called for the resignation of Spain’s Social Rights Minister Ion Bellara after he accused Israel of committing “war crimes” in Gaza and “genocide” against Palestinians.

Andrés then replied in a statement that Israel was “protecting its citizens” and demanded that Spanish Government President Pedro Sánchez relieve him of his post. “It doesn’t represent me or Spain,” he said.