{"id":64558,"date":"2025-05-20T01:00:46","date_gmt":"2025-05-20T08:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/civileats.com\/?p=64558"},"modified":"2025-05-19T23:25:45","modified_gmt":"2025-05-20T06:25:45","slug":"sean-sherman-expands-his-vision-for-decolonizing-the-us-food-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/civileats.com\/2025\/05\/20\/sean-sherman-expands-his-vision-for-decolonizing-the-us-food-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Sean Sherman Expands His Vision for Decolonizing the US Food System"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/div>

Sean Sherman<\/a> walks through an expansive commissary kitchen in South Minneapolis, his eyes lighting up with excitement. He isn\u2019t taking in the kitchen as it is\u2014dormant but well-equipped with an industrial smoker, a walk-in sausage-making area, and plentiful storage space. Instead, he\u2019s seeing the future of his Meals for Native Institutions initiative, when the space is up, running, and realizing a long-term vision to introduce more Indigenous foods into the American food system.<\/p><\/div>

\n

Sherman, an Oglala Lakota tribal member with an unassuming demeanor, a soft smile, and a signature long braid hanging down his back, has endeavored to revitalize Native American food traditions since 2014, when he founded The Sioux Chef<\/a>, a catering and educational enterprise. His focus is on \u201cdecolonized\u201d food<\/a>\u2014made without Eurocentric ingredients such as beef, pork, chicken, dairy, wheat flour, \u00a0and cane sugar\u2014most notably at his acclaimed Minneapolis restaurant, Owamni<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re scaling up our efforts almost simultaneously in Minnesota and Montana, and the goal is that we\u2019re developing a model that works anywhere.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

There he\u2019s become known for cedar-braising bison (flavoring meat with sprigs of the coniferous tree), chopping up plant medicines like ramps, morels, and sweet potatoes, and finishing off dishes with seasonings like sumac and sage. His Indigenous Food Lab<\/a> (IFL), also in Minneapolis, is an incubator and training kitchen where Native chefs and entrepreneurs can access equipment and information from Sherman and other knowledge keepers.<\/p>\n

Sherman still cooks at his restaurant, but these days, he has his sights set on a triad of initiatives that bring him closer to the goal of making the U.S. food system more inclusive and indeed more Indigenous. \u00a0The opening later this year of \u00a0an Indigenous Food Lab satellite in Bozeman, Montana, is part of that vision. So too is his cookbook Turtle Island<\/em><\/a> (Clarkson Potter), which I coauthored, covering Native foodways across North America.<\/p>\n

But in this moment, Sherman is most excited about Meals for Native Institutions, which will provide schools, hospitals, penitentiaries, and community centers with large-format Indigenous foods.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis model has such immense potential to have a huge impact on the way we eat, especially for kids and elders\u2014and really everyone,\u201d he says about the larger efforts to decolonize institutional food.<\/p>\n

Realizing a Vision<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div>

This year feels like a full-circle moment for Sherman, who grew up eating government commodity foods\u2014think canned beef and neon-orange blocks of cheese\u2014on South Dakota\u2019s Pine Ridge Reservation<\/a>. That tribal community has endured some of the most devastating impacts of European colonization and U.S. policies on Indigenous cultures, practices, and foodways, including the government-sanctioned slaughter of the all-important bison.<\/p><\/div>

\n
\"Sean<\/a>

Sherman cooking at the Indigenous Food Lab incubator and training kitchen in Minneapolis. (Photo credit: Bill Phelps Studio)<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

Today, Pine Ridge has some of the highest poverty rates<\/a>\u00a0in the nation and lowest life expectancies<\/a>\u00a0in the world. For Sherman, a TIME 100 honoree<\/a> and three-time James Beard Award winner<\/a>, a return to Indigenous foods can address some of those marked inequities.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe down the road we\u2019ll even be able to get some of these Native food products into the commodity food program, which so many rural Indigenous communities like the Navajo Nation and Pine Ridge still utilize today,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

His mission to revitalize Indigenous foodways began with a yearning to learn more about his people\u2019s food while also curtailing the marked health inequities tribal communities experience, including disproportionate rates of\u00a0obesity<\/a>,\u00a0type 2 diabetes<\/a>, and\u00a0heart disease<\/a>. He\u2019s done this through his nonprofit, North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems\u00a0(NATIFS)<\/a>, and through Owamni, and now he\u2019ll have additional ways to move toward these goals.<\/p>\n

Meals for Native Institutions will be housed in a newly acquired space<\/a> that Sherman has named W\u00f3yute Thipi (meaning \u201cfood building\u201d in Dakota), situated along what\u2019s known as the American Indian Cultural Corridor<\/a> on Minneapolis\u2019 Franklin Avenue, a cultural district home to several Indigenous-owned businesses, including a coffee shop and an art gallery.<\/p>\n

The building will serve as NATIFS\u2019 headquarters and feature a counter-service Indigenous BBQ restaurant dubbed \u0160HOT\u00c1\u2014the Dakota word for smoke\u2014that\u2019s expected to open later this year. Like Owamni, that public-facing eatery is meant to bring more meaningful attention to his big-picture goal.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a huge need for culturally appropriate foods, especially in schools and programs serving Native people.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Although the institutional foods initiative is still in the early stages, with Sherman actively fundraising to get it off the ground this summer, he foresees the well-equipped 4,000-square-foot commissary kitchen churning out a plethora of simply prepared, nutritious Indigenous foods. Early recipes include wild rice pilaf with dried berries; baked tepary beans lightly sweetened with maple syrup; and a three sisters<\/a> soup that brings together nixtamalized pima corn, tepary beans, and delicata squash.<\/p>\n

Much like the fare served at Owamni and planned for \u0160HOT\u00c1, the meals created for schools and hospitals will be devoid of ingredients introduced by Europeans during colonization. Sherman\u2019s team is working closely with a nutritionist to ensure recipes will meet established USDA nutritional standards for those settings.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know that the menus designed for the American school system aren\u2019t great,\u201d he said. \u201cFor example, pizza is somehow considered a perfect food because it covers the meat, grain, dairy, and fruit and vegetable requirements all in one swoop, but we know that pizza isn\u2019t a perfect food for schoolkids. We\u2019re not trying to replace the entire lunch program; we\u2019re trying to create culturally specific components so there are options to build out menus using these recipes with at least one ingredient coming from an Indigenous producer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Local Indigenous advocates are cheering Sherman on as he expands his purview to better serve the robust Native community in the Twin Cities, estimated at more than 35,000 individuals. \u201cThere is a huge need for culturally appropriate foods, especially in schools and programs serving Native people, and I’m grateful Sean is supporting this with his new business,\u201d said Indigenous Food Network<\/a> Program Coordinator Kateri Tuttle. \u201cThere will always be a need to continue to expand services that\u00a0provide our families and community with these important\u00a0foods.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>

\"Sean<\/a>

Sherman wants to introduce more Indigenous foods into the American food system. (Photo credit: Bill Phelps Studio)<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

\n

As much as this is about feeding people, it\u2019s also about uplifting Native entrepreneurs and businesses. To that end, Sherman estimates that NATIFS currently funnels some $700,000 a year to Indigenous producers and farmers. He only see that growing from here.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to ensure there\u2019s always money going toward Indigenous food production,\u201d he said. \u201cI think we could probably double or triple our current purchasing power with this move into institutional food, where we\u2019ll eventually be creating thousands of servings a day. So we\u2019re not only addressing a need, but we\u2019re also helping create a more sustainable system.\u201d<\/p>\n

Muckleshoot nutrition educator and food sovereignty advocate Val Segrest, who has collaborated with Sherman on past initiatives, emphasized the importance of initiatives like this.<\/p>\n

\u201cEfforts like this are a powerful reclaiming of space [and] story, and strengthen food sovereignty,\u201d she said in an email. \u201cBy establishing Indigenous-owned food hubs in the heart of our communities, we restore pathways for cultural knowledge, health, and economic vitality to thrive. This is more than a building or initiative\u2014it\u2019s a beacon for Indigenous food futures, rooted in our values and nourished by our ancestors\u2019 vision.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sherman is also eager to launch the satellite IFL in Bozeman, developed in partnership with Montana State University\u2019s Buffalo Nations Food System Initiative<\/a>, the Montana Indigenous Food Sovereignty Initiative<\/a>, and the Human Resource Development Council of Southwest Montana<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Set to open this fall, it will be located in the Human Resources Development Council of Southwest Montana<\/a> building and feature an incubator kitchen, a classroom, and a large warehouse designed to replicate the model he has developed in Minneapolis. Similar satellite IFLs are in the works in Rapid City, South Dakota, and Anchorage, Alaska\u2014all intended to empower regional Indigenous chefs, entrepreneurs, community members, and organizations with professional equipment, culinary knowledge, and other support as needed.<\/p>\n

For Sherman\u2019s collaborators in Montana, it\u2019s a welcome development. \u201cFirst and foremost, the Indigenous Foods Lab is about revitalizing the kinship economy for the well-being of the people and the land; in the current climate, this work is more important than ever,\u201d said Jill Falcon Ramaker, PhD (Bishkane Mishtadim Ikwe), director of the Buffalo Nations Food System Initiative.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the past, our [Native] food system was sustainable for more than 13,000 years because of the networked work of Native people and reliance on the gifts of the land or our older-than-human relatives,” she said. “As we return to the land in a place-based food system, we must rebuild our community amongst Native nations in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the impact of the forthcoming IFL goes beyond just the area\u2019s tribal communities, explained KayAnn Miller, co-executive director of the Montana Partnership to End Childhood Hunger.<\/a> She pointed to alarming state statistics that she hoped the IFL could help curtail: that about two in five Montana residents have two or more chronic diseases, and that about a third of Montana children have at least one chronic disease.<\/p>\n<\/div>

\"pieces<\/a>

An entree from Owamni, Sean Sherman’s award-winning restaurant, featuring elk. (Photo credit: Scott Streble).<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

\n

\u201cAs we know, chronic diseases often have a dietary component, which means we need to eat a whole lot better in Montana,\u201d said Miller. \u201cIndigenous foods\u2014which tend to be whole and healthy with an emphasis on lean proteins and fruits and vegetables\u2014are right in line with what we all need to eat to reduce health challenges like heart disease and diabetes, which are two of the top 10 causes of death in our state. I see the Indigenous Food Lab as a way for all of us to learn more about these good foods, how to prepare and cook them, and how to grow and eat more of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Sherman, it\u2019s an opportunity to address the inequities he grew up with back on the Pine Ridge Reservation while also uplifting local Native communities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re scaling up our efforts almost simultaneously in Minnesota and Montana, and the goal is that we\u2019re developing a model that works anywhere\u2014the Dakotas, Alaska, Hawaii,\u201d he said. \u201cNot only does this give Indigenous communities a platform to talk about the true histories of their cultures and these lands, but it\u2019s also building skills and creating jobs within our communities. This is the kind of food sovereignty we\u2019ve always been working toward.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div><\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sherman, an Oglala Lakota tribal member with an unassuming demeanor, a soft smile, and a signature long braid hanging down his back, has endeavored to revitalize Native American food traditions since 2014, when he founded The Sioux Chef, a catering and educational enterprise. His focus is on \u201cdecolonized\u201d food\u2014made without Eurocentric ingredients such as beef, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1312,"featured_media":64561,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4368,485,6920],"tags":[],"coauthors":[43471],"class_list":["post-64558","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-food-access","category-indigenous-foodways"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSean Sherman Expands His Vision for Decolonizing US Food | Civil Eats<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Sioux chef, known for celebrating and restoring pre-colonial foodways, launches two new Indigenous food ventures.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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