Indigenous Food Lab Is Changing the Way America Eats

In a time when conversations around sustainability, food justice, and cultural preservation are gaining global momentum, one organization is quietly reshaping the American food landscape: Indigenous Food Lab. This Minneapolis-based nonprofit is not just a culinary initiative—it’s a powerful movement to reclaim In

digenous food systems, revive ancestral knowledge, and promote food sovereignty for Native communities.

The Indigenous Food Lab, founded by celebrated chef and Indigenous food activist Sean Sherman (also known as “The Sioux Chef”), is part of the larger nonprofit North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems (NATIFS). It is dedicated to uplifting Indigenous communities by returning traditional foodways to Native hands.

Reclaiming What Was Lost: The Need for Indigenous Food Sovereignty

Indigenous peoples of North America once had highly sustainable, healthful food systems rooted in deep relationships with the land. However, colonization, forced relocation, and government policies systematically dismantled these foodways. The result was not just the loss of food, but of language, culture, and health.

Today, Native communities face some of the highest rates of diet-related illnesses, food insecurity, and disconnection from ancestral traditions. The Indigenous Food Lab exists to reverse this.

Its mission is simple yet profound: to train Indigenous chefs and food workers in traditional cooking methods, food preparation, and sustainable practices so they can bring these back to their own communities.

What Is the Indigenous Food Lab?

The Indigenous Food Lab functions both as a training center and a culinary incubator. Located in the Midtown Global Market of Minneapolis, it provides culinary education, business support, and community programming centered around Indigenous ingredients and recipes.

Unlike typical culinary schools, the Indigenous Food Lab focuses on pre-colonial foods—eliminating ingredients like dairy, wheat, processed sugar, and industrial oils. Instead, it reintroduces nutrient-rich foods such as bison, wild rice, corn, beans, squash, and foraged herbs.

Their educational programs serve Indigenous people who want to build food-related businesses or simply learn to cook traditional meals. Graduates often return to their tribal communities to start cafes, gardens, mobile food trucks, or school programs using what they’ve learned.

To explore their programs and impact, visit the Indigenous Food Lab official page.

Building a National Movement

While the Minneapolis lab is the flagship location, the long-term vision is much broader. NATIFS plans to open more regional Indigenous Food Labs across the United States and Canada to spread traditional knowledge, create economic opportunities, and strengthen tribal food systems.

This decentralized model allows each lab to adapt to the native foods, cultures, and needs of their local tribal nations. For example, a food lab in the Southwest might focus on corn and beans, while one in the Pacific Northwest might emphasize salmon, berries, and cedar preparation.

Sherman often emphasizes that food sovereignty is a form of resistance and healing. Reclaiming food traditions means reclaiming identity and power. It also allows communities to reestablish health and cultural pride in generations who have grown up disconnected from their roots.

A Restaurant With a Mission

In 2021, NATIFS opened a restaurant called Owamni in downtown Minneapolis. The restaurant quickly earned national acclaim, winning the James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant in 2022. Owamni serves only Indigenous ingredients—no wheat, dairy, cane sugar, or soy—and showcases what modern Indigenous cuisine can be.

While Owamni is a fine-dining space, it also serves as an educational tool and source of inspiration for students at the Indigenous Food Lab. It proves that Indigenous cuisine is not only relevant, but also sophisticated, modern, and delicious.

To see the full menu and philosophy, check out Owamni’s website.

More Than Food: A Holistic Approach

The work of Indigenous Food Lab is about more than just cooking. The team promotes sustainable agriculture, seed saving, traditional harvesting, and community wellness. They collaborate with foragers, farmers, seed banks, herbalists, and elders to create a holistic system that revives Indigenous knowledge at every level of the food chain.

This approach ensures that the food is not only culturally accurate but also environmentally sustainable and community-empowering. Every dish served or skill taught becomes a tool for cultural survival and climate resilience.

Why This Matters Now

The spotlight on Indigenous Food Lab comes at a critical moment. With climate change, rising food insecurity, and a broken industrial food system, many Americans are turning to ancestral wisdom for solutions. Indigenous communities have always practiced regenerative agriculture and ecosystem-based harvesting—principles now being adopted by climate scientists and farmers worldwide.

Furthermore, the movement to support Indigenous food sovereignty aligns with broader efforts toward racial equity, land rights, and health justice. Supporting this work means investing in a future where diverse food traditions are not just remembered, but practiced, honored, and shared.

How You Can Support

Individuals can support the Indigenous Food Lab and NATIFS in several ways:

• Donate directly to support culinary education and expansion of new food labs
• Dine at Owamni or other Indigenous-owned restaurants
• Buy Indigenous ingredients or foraged foods from local Native producers
• Share their work on social media to raise awareness

Your support can help expand this mission across more tribal communities throughout North America.

Final Thoughts

The Indigenous Food Lab is not just feeding people—it’s feeding a movement. By training the next generation of Indigenous food leaders, preserving ancient food knowledge, and restoring community health, this nonprofit is a beacon of hope for both Indigenous nations and the wider world. It reminds us that the path to a sustainable and just food system may lie in the very traditions that were once nearly erased.

If you’re looking for the future of food, it may begin by looking to the past—and the Indigenous Food Lab is showing us exactly how to do that.

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