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A Chef Who Aims to Educate About How Food Affects the Earth
Through her restaurant in France and her academy, Nadia Sammut aims to teach people about how their food choices can harm — or help — the planet.
This article is part of a Women and Leadership special report highlighting the work by women around the world addressing climate change.
Nadia Sammut comes from a dynasty of chefs. Her grandmother opened La Fenière, a restaurant in Provence, in 1975, and her mother later took it over, clinching a Michelin star in 1995. Now, Ms. Sammut herself is in charge — and she has turned La Fenière into the world’s first Michelin-star gluten-free restaurant.
The gluten-free, lactose-free menu is no fad. Ms. Sammut was born with celiac disease, caused by an immune system reaction to gluten, so she’s acutely aware of food’s impact on human health and on the planet’s. She has turned that awareness into a successful gastronomical proposition — specialties include a beetroot dish with rose water and geranium oil — but also an ethos which her academy Nourrir (Feeding) disseminates by educating schools, farmers, scientists and businesses.
Ms. Sammut, 43, recently spoke about food and the environment in a telephone interview from Lourmarin, France. The following conversation has been edited and condensed.
Are you aiming to change mentalities around food through your restaurant and academy?
Yes, absolutely. Eating three times a day is voting. We need to be conscious of the fact that our nutritional acts have consequences on the environment, the climate, and the health of our planet. The choice and sourcing of ingredients is a major act of environmental decision-making.
What are you doing about it yourself, concretely?
My belief is that we need to revitalize our farmland and soil and to come back to a regenerative kind of food. I’m working with farmers on growing regenerative plants, meaning plants that will release nitrogen in the soil, that don’t require a lot of water in case of drought and that are nutritional.
One plant that’s at the core of my research is the chickpea. We’re familiar with it in hummus and in couscous dishes, but not as a main-course component. We tend to think of plants as a side, an accompaniment on our plate. But chickpeas bring protein, and we need protein. So instead of eating beef at every meal, we can bring in pulses [dry, edible seeds] such as chickpeas.
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