Dear Food Network, Stop Junioring Things

Food Network’s “Food Network Star Kids” contestant makes a hilarious face.

The Restaurant Industry Labor Shortage

Good help is hard to find, as they say, and in the last few years, restaurants have seen a decline in applicants in the food-industry. As this article points out, head chefs aren’t who we’re talking about here. We’re talking about line cooks, people right out of culinary school- you know, the silent heroes of fine-dining. One of the problems cited in the article is low wages in major cities- San Francisco, Chicago, New York, Seattle. Cost of living is high, and the wages are low.

Could another issue be that people are less willing to go to culinary school, rack up thousands of dollars in debt, work shitty hours and get paid barely enough to live in exchange for something they love?

Maybe, just maybe. And how to you change the minds of an entire generation of people that the food industry is the right place to be? Give them opportunities when they’re young, show them how famous and cool and rich they could be one day  and wrangle them into the industry with shiny trophies and prize money.

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So, there we have it. A few “reasons” for putting children on TV. No one is saying kids don’t want to be on TV, but there is plenty of research and anecdotal evidence that suggests it just isn’t good for their little developing minds and psyches. They can’t truly grasp the meaning of what they’re doing, and what consequences may come. That’s what parents are for, and yet, they seem more than willing to allow their spawn to dive headfirst into shallow shark-infested poison waters.

And so, some of you may say that it seems harmless enough. They’re just cooking shows. The judges even soften themselves up for the little guys, so what’s the harm? The harm is that the foundation has been laid. Where does it end? And whose responsibility is it to call out that enough is enough?

What do you think? Is it exploitation or mere entertainment? Give us a shout in the comments!