Welcome to New Nordic Food’s newsletter
February 2010
Nordic News
Funding for new culinary experiences
SWEDEN: 50 million kroner are now available to turn ideas on culinary experiences and gastronomy in Sweden's Rural Development Programme into reality. Sweden, the new culinary nation, has been allocated further resources in 2010-13 to achieve its goal of becoming Europe's new culinary nation. The areas of priority include culinary experiences, export and distribution. Read (in Swedish): http://www.jordbruksverket.se/amnesomraden/mojligheterpalandsbygden/livsmedel/matlandetsverige.4.5aec661121e261385280002181.html
Record-breaking week for Norway at Grüne Woche
NORWAY: Record numbers visited the Norwegian stand at the International Green Week (Grüne Woche) in Berlin. Norway was very well represented with a broad range of food and travel exhibitors from the regions of Lofoten, Gudbrandsdalen, Møre and Romsdal, Agder, Østfold and Vestfold. Read about the International Green Week: www1.messe-berlin.de/vip8_1/website/Internet/Internet/www.gruenewoche/englisch/Press-Service/Press_Releases/index.jsp?lang=1&newslang=en&newssys_id=29794&source_oid=7164&year=2010
The Green Tourism Project is half-way
NORWAY: The Norwegian county of Nordland is striving for more green tourism. The County Governor's project, Green Tourism, which concluded at the end of 2010, aims to increase collaboration between tourism, agriculture and food on the farms in the county. Entrepreneurship, increased expertise, product development, and marketing are the priority areas. Read more (in Norwegian) on http://www.regjeringen.no/nb/dep/lmd/dok/tidsskrift_og_nyhetsbrev/fylkesnytt/2010/Fylkesnytt-fra-Nordland-12010.html?id=592157#reiseliv
New apple register
DENMARK: Are you looking for an apple variety with special qualities to plant in your garden? Or would you like to find the names of apple trees for the garden? The apple register http://www.nordgen.org/nak/ will help you find the name of the variety. The register is a co-operation between NordGen and Pometet at the Faculty of Life Sciences, Copenhagen University, whose apple collection is part of NordGen. Read about the apple register on http://www.nordgen.org/nak/index.php?view=about
Added value for Finnish food
FINLAND: The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has set up Food Chain, a national delegation which will work until 31 December 2012 with the goal of adding value to the food industry and making Finnish food more visible in the market. The delegation is preparing a development program to strengthen Finland's competitiveness and seek focus points for the industry and the ministry. This will cover consumers' shopping habits, and responsibility, the environment, product safety, nutrition, animal welfare and where the goods are produced.
http://mmm.multiedition.fi/laatuketju/www/se/index.php?we_objectID=332 (in Swedish)
Optimism among beekeepers
SWEDEN: Swedish honey is popular and beekeepers are beginning to believe in the future. Mikael Engstad, the new chairman of the Swedish Professional Beekeepers, has 370 bee colonies himself and his goal is to have 500 in Vestre Småland. Beekeepers are noticing the trend for locally produced foods and the environment debate, so the industry is eager to attract more beekeepers, and is also discussing product development and marketing.
Safe food is clean food
NORWAY: Food safety, safe food is clean food, according to senior researcher Trine Eggen, from the research institute Bioforsk. She is working on a research project entitled 'From plants to people - accumulation and transfer of organic substances in the primary food chain'. She points out that it is important to ensure that grains and plants do not contain substances that are harmful to health or damage the environment. Trine Eggen is working in partnership with the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science and the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) in Germany.
New Nordic in Japan
The popular television series 'New Scandinavian Cooking' is being watched by up to 25 million Japanese these days. The programmes, featuring the chef Claus Meyer, are being broadcast by one of Japan's biggest satellite channels, BS Fuji. The Danish embassy in Tokyo has been especially involved in making the deal with BS Fiji, and at the same time as the programmes are being shown, the embassy is holding events under the theme 'Honest Food'. Claus Meyer hopes that the television series and the exposure to Scandinavian food may provide new impetus for further co-operation and perhaps trade agreements. Further information on Claus Meyer's website www.meyersmad.dk.
www.nynordiskmad.org – read an article on the love of food in Greenland and France by Agathe Devisme, Ipiutaq guest farm in South Greenland.