2023 Retrospective: Embassy of Food

If we approach our food differently, in terms of growing, transporting and consuming it, we can make enormous improvements. For the planet and for society. But it won’t happen just like that. That it requires a comprehensive food transition, different areas of expertise coming together and cross-sector collaboration is one of the key ideas in the Embassy of Food’s narrative. “A healthy food chain needs an integrated view. Design in the broadest sense of the word can help you achieve this,” says Barbara Vos. 

Read the entire interview with the creative lead of the Embassy here.

The food chain can be quite a mishmash of players, as Food & Agri Director of Rabobank Alex Datema knows all too well. “The complexity of the chain is generally underestimated,” Datema noted on the collaboration between the Embassy of Food and Rabobank ahead of DDW23. “There are often many more steps than you would think between the moment something is produced and when it ends up on someone’s plate. And there are many more parties involved than you might initially think.”

Mindmap

In the run-up to DDW23, visual storyteller Rogier Klomp created a mind map that unravels this mishmash, using images to capture a comprehensive view in a powerful way. Conversations with over 70 experts, stakeholders and initiatives in which we ask how they see the “food system” and in which direction they would like it to go, underpin the ‘Mapping the Food System’ mind map on display at the Evoluon in Eindhoven until 23 March 2024.

In this WDE Tour, get a sneak preview of the Embassy of Food expo at the Evoluon.

Multiple visions

If you’re looking to change the food chain, it’s important not to stick to one vision, as could be seen in the Embassy of Food exhibition and programmes during DDW23. Which is why, under the heading of Future Perspectives – Farm of Tomorrow, the Embassy has selected five different designers to guide us through the key elements that make up our food system.

Nutrient cycle

Fides Lapidaire looked at the nutrient cycle. One of Lapidaires main qualities is that she isn’t afraid to not understand the system. She looks where you don’t think you’ll find anything, thus uncovering new questions. She links an experience to these new perspectives, which sets things in motion through perception. From closing the nutrient cycle by selling ‘Broodje Poep’ (Shit Sandwich) to an erotic carrot experience that explores our food system.

AI and food

Dirk-Jan Visser and Gus Drake have investigated what artificial intelligence can do to help us better understand our natural ecosystems. In their new project New Horizon Initiative, also on display during DDW23, they jointly examine the mutual relationship between mankind and non-human entities and the significance of the latter in a landscape. After all, the Dutch landscape is man-made. But for whom? And what place is given to nature in it? Using artificial intelligence, and based on visual stakeholder analysis, the project visualises and describes the different interests of non-human life in a landscape.

Local food from the city

Bram de Vos has explored the ideal agricultural hectare in the city. In Uprooting Urbanism , Bram looks at how local food production can make cities more resilient. And how productive landscapes, both urban and rural, can promote interaction between diverse backgrounds and cultures. This ultimately leads to a transparent and stronger sense of community.

Diversity

At DDW23, Marrit Kyung Ok Schakel showed how she experiments with the taste of biodiversity. She is a farmer, cheese maker, biodiversity activist and mother. Her Buitenverwachting (Beyond Expectations) farm is a place full of diversity: of plants, different animals and people. And you can taste this diversity in her products. 

And with Charlotte van der Woude, we delved deeper into the revaluation of undiscovered soil layers as a source of solutions. If you want to know more about what she is up to, read the WDE Spotlight taking a closer look at what she does here. 

Together around the table

At the Embassy conference, approximately 100 food experts and designers sat down to exchange ideas in the Natlab Podiumzaal in Eindhoven. The perfect time to bring all these visions together, on the road towards improvements in our food system. A diverse group of farmers, scientists, food designers, chefs, entrepreneurs, artists and health experts took part in the roundtables. You can read more about the conference and access the reflection paper (Dutch) in this article.

One of the participants in the table discussions was Arne Hendriks, who was at Ketelhuisplein with BURO MISO during DDW23. Hendriks also believes in bringing together different visions, talking about his collaboration with Rabobank in this interview.

“We believe in the power of bringing all these people together,” Barbara Vos said prior to the conversations. “These types of conversations can lead to insights about what that future should look like.”

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