MISSION LEAP FROG

Building a healthier global food system - one plate at a time

Elevating African Cuisine at the forefront of a global plant-based revolution

Meet the team

Todd Anderson

Turnip Vegan

Chef Educator Creator

Conor Spacey

Chef Manifesto

Culinary Director Author

Tanya O’Callaghan

Musician

Activist Speaker Health Coach

Mission Leap Frog is a culinary, environmental and cultural movement powered by a collective of visionary chefs, including Todd Anderson (Turnip Vegan) and Conor Spacey (Chefs Manifesto) alongside internationally acclaimed musician and activist Tanya O’Callaghan dedicated to celebrating the depth, diversity, and brilliance of African cuisine in leading the world to a plant-based tipping point.

At a time when much of the world is grappling with the consequences of ultra-processed diets, and climate disasters due to our unsustainable food industries, Africa holds something powerful: enduring food traditions rooted in whole food ingredients, sustainable farming practices and plant-forward cooking. But it is also at a critical crossroads where western processed food influence is swooping in fast.

The inspiration for Mission Leap Frog began when Tanya traveled to Senegal for the first time in 2023 and witnessed a powerful paradox firsthand: a continent rooted in one of the world’s richest, naturally plant-based food cultures, yet already facing the early wave of ultra-processed foods and rising diet-related health challenges. What she saw was not just a challenge, but a defining opportunity for the planet’s future.

Deeply moved by the generosity, wisdom, and community-centered food traditions she encountered, Tanya connected with pioneering chefs and food leaders working in The Gambia and Uganda who were already driving change on the ground. United by a shared vision, they came together to form Mission Leap Frog, a movement to elevate Africa and its innate food wisdom as a culinary leader for a global force for transformation.

A continent at a turning point.

The Problem

Western fast food is moving in fast.

  • Ultra-processed food products are spreading rapidly across the continent.

  • Diet-related non-communicable diseases are rising across Africa at unprecedented rate

  • Traditional food knowledge is at risk of being lost within a generation.

The Solution

Africa already holds the answer.

  • Africa’s food culture is naturally plant-forward rooted in wholesome ingredients

  • Deep-rooted food wisdom that sustain health for generations, before the rise of Western diet-related diseases

  • Africa has the opportunity to leapfrog the Western ultra-processed model entirely.

Let’s Stay in Touch

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