Claus Meyer has implored the fresh produce industry to seduce consumers into eating more fruit and vegetables.
The progenitor of New Nordic Cuisine, the movement that has brought Copenhagen more Michelin stars than Rome, began the 2012 FRESH Congress with some reflections on the "cheap, frozen, margarine hell" of a childhood spent in 1960s Denmark.
In response to the culinary deprivations of his early years, Meyer set about building small businesses that encouraged his countrymen to produce and eat more fruit and vegetables, more seasonal food and more from the wild, all the while maintaining a friendly attitude to the environment and creating a distinctively Nordic cuisine.
Challenging the old "discount, fast-food mentality" and an increasingly globalised food culture, Meyer persuaded suppliers and consumers to help create a brand with "vegetables at its heart and farmers as the new heroes".
His group of businesses now has about 500 employees and turns over around €70m annually. And he believes around 100 other restaurants also now follow the philosophy of New Nordic Cuisine.
Meyer chose to speak directly to Morocco, Ghana and Greece – who might feel unfairly maligned – as he encouraged the industry around the world to start inclusive fresh produce-based movements with a local focus, even where there is a "lousy food history".
Around 160 of the European fresh produce industry's top decision-makers travelled to FRESH Nordic on 23-24 May, which was taking place in Scandinavia for the first time.
More information from the event can be found at www.freshcongress.com
A full report from FRESH Nordic will be available in the July issue of Eurofruit.
