Our History
Founded in 2007 by Chef Michel Nischan, the late Gus Schumacher, and the late Michael Batterberry, Wholesome Wave was created to address diet-related diseases by helping low-income Americans buy and eat healthy fruits and vegetables.
Millions of Americans suffer every day from nutrition insecurity as a result of hunger, making them highly vulnerable to diet-related diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. Wholesome Wave believes that solving hunger is not just about providing more food, it’s also about providing the right food, so we can combat the real problem of nutrition insecurity. As a professional chef and the father of children living with diabetes, Nischan learned through extensive research that simply increasing fruit and vegetable consumption could reduce the risk of these conditions while improving lives.
The Values Of Wholesome Wave
Diversity
“We are inclusive in who we are and who we serve, in what we do and how we do it.”
Integrity
“We are truthful, transparent, reliable and accountable.”
Dignity & Respect
“We are defined by how we treat everyone, at all times and in all circumstances.”
Passion
“We love doing what we do and we do it with great vigor.”
Excellence
“We strive to be the best we can be to ensure the highest level of personal and professional success.”
These seven values are our DNA. They are what makes us who and what we are.
We are Wholesome Wave.
Humility
“We embrace that the need is great and the journey long; we work hard and with humility.”
Collaboration
“We support one another and know that impact is achieved through teamwork, at home, and in the field.”
Wholesome Wave operates in accordance with a set of core values that have been a part of our culture from our earliest days. They were first introduced and consistently nurtured over the years by our Founder and current Chairman Michel Nischan.
As with most organizations, we have changed and adapted a great deal over the past two decades. Our core values have not — they have been our North Star, the rock upon which everything else is built.
Diversity has been so foundational to who we are that we never felt the need to call it out. The very reason for our existence is providing access and affordability of fruits and vegetables to underserved communities — communities that are disproportionately home to people of color and diverse ethnicities. COVID 19 has made abundantly clear something we have known for a long time — communities of color are disproportionately deprived of healthy food making them vulnerable to diet-related diseases like diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and heart disease.
Make no mistake about it. Diversity has always been an implied core value of Wholesome Wave. Now we are making it explicit. Follow with us as our talented board and team evolve over time to reflect the diversity of the community members who participate in our programs.