THERE is almost no limit to the positive side-effects of good food and in the case of celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, he is using his knowledge and influence to nourish interested and able disenfranchised youth in the most fundamental way.
He puts them to work as apprentice chefs and then stands back as (most of them) transform their lives at the kitchen stove.

Once perfected, the smart, modern Mediterranean fare they produce is plated up and presented to the paying public, a move that ensures the ongoing success of a unique social responsibility project.

Operating under the umbrella of the non-profit Jamie Oliver Foundation, the core apprentice program is delivered in a purpose-built restaurant, opened in London in 2002 and named Fifteen for the number of people in the program's first cohort.

This global social enterprise with young people at its heart has since expanded to Cornwall and Amsterdam, and the tough, unforgiving apprenticeship has been the subject of a reality television show. Graduates, meanwhile, are being snapped up by top eateries, even opening their own restaurants, and discerning diners are lining up to eat at the three Fifteens.

It's an improbable success story for this lisping, tousle-haired boy from Essex (whose manner gives the impression he wouldn't know a butter knife from a silicone basting brush) but by putting to good use his public profile, his adoration for all things culinary and his evident affinity for misguided youth, Oliver has fashioned a successful formula that cocks a gentle snook at an establishment in which fine dining is often the preserve of the elite.

"Having not been the brightest banana in the bunch myself, I realised that my biggest weapon in life was the determination, enthusiasm, Silicone brush . . . and actions-speak-louder-than-words approach my father taught me, and I wanted to get this across to others, especially those interested in food," Oliver has said. "I set up Fifteen because I believe young people have untapped talents, often hidden by problems in their home lives. These talents can be freed by a passion for good food and meaningful hard work. Fifteen represents the way I would have loved to have been taught myself."

The restaurant takes unemployed recruits through a 12-month apprentice program based around on-the-job learning, college study and personal development; in short, it begins at the farm gate and ends at the very coalface that is Fifteen. Here, students serve signature dishes and their menu testifies to the rigorous learning process to which they have been exposed.

More than 200 cooks have graduated from the program, with about 90 per cent of these now working in their exciting new field. And Oliver is determined that many more shall follow in their footsteps.

"[England is] full of young people who struggle with traditional schooling, housing, social issues and have no steady work, if any. We are deeply passionate about these young people at Fifteen."