The Green Museum wins prestigious Nordic award
Madhistoriker Bettina Buhl (til venstre) og direktør Anne Bjerrekær står i Madens Hus med beviset på den fornemme førsteplads i kategorien ‘Nordens bedste madhistoriefortæller’.
In the EMBLA Nordic Food Awards earlier this year, The Green Museum was nominated as the Danish candidate in the 'Nordic Food Communicator' category; and in a strong field with a total of seven nominees from all Nordic countries, the jury's choice fell on The Green Museum.
After last year's corona-canceled show, the Nordic food award EMBLA returned on Monday, June 20, as Oslo opened its doors to this year's awards ceremony, which celebrates Nordic cuisine. The EMBLA award, which is awarded every other year, was established to strengthen the common Nordic food identity and culture and to increase the outside world's interest in Nordic food.
The Green Museum was the Danish representative in the 'Nordic Food Communicator' category, and in an extremely talented and impressive field of seven nominees, one from each Nordic country, the museum succeeded in being named the best food storyteller in the Nordics.
The prize is awarded to a person, a storyteller, a medium or a concept that conveys the joy and raises awareness of Nordic food.
Proud and honored recipients at The Green Museum
It was director Anne Bjerrekær, who was in Oslo on behalf of the Green Museum; and for the director it was a really good experience, not only to receive the award on behalf of the museum, but also to meet the many talented enthusiasts from all over the Nordic region.
'It's fantastic that Denmark was able to go home with three of the seven awards! And I'm incredibly proud of this award, because it confirms that we have made the right choice for the Green Museum with Madens Hus. There are many good people, including chefs, producers and volunteers, who have helped us along the way. The award is also for them, says director Anne Bjerrekær, who continues.
'In addition, for me it was a huge experience to meet the other nominees from all over the Nordic region. So, when you go all in on producing vegetables and tomatoes in vertical farming in Greenland, so that every single little tomato doesn't have to be flown in, then you are a bit wild and very creative – and that gives hope for humanity. And they didn't even win in their category!
The biggest enthusiast and prominent figure in the House of Food is the Green Museum's food historian Bettina Buhl, who was unable to participate in Oslo, but for her too this distinguished award and honor is a huge pat on the back.
'I am happy and proud of both the standardization and the award. An area of responsibility for the cultural history of food and meals in Denmark concerns us all, and therefore the communication must be relevant, exciting and reflective,' says food historian Bettina Buhl.
For Bettina, it is important that the Food History can be used to a great extent in the story of our own families' history, for inspiration for today's cooking, for storytelling about Danish food culture and for understanding life and seasonal traditions. And that is why she ensures that the framework is often broken in Madens Hus - and food events are held where "food grows", and events are created as an important collaboration with national and international media, who can see that there is both culture and good stories in a meal.
About EMBLA and the award
The Danish delegation at the EMBLA Nordic Food Awards.
The award is sponsored by the six Nordic agricultural organizations, united under the Nordic Farmers' Association Central Council (NBC). It is also supported by the Nordic Farmers' Association Central Council and is part of the New Nordic Food III program. The Norwegian Farmers' Association hosted this year's awards in Oslo.
Seven Nordic countries competed for the same number of awards this year. This year there were a record number of nominations, and the jury selected winners based on criteria such as sustainability, inspiration, originality, honesty and, not least, Nordic recognizability.
The jury's assessment was as follows:
'Nordic Food Communicator: The Green Museum, Denmark
Get your hands dirty! The winner is a living museum, where knowledge and activities meet history through living stories. The museum gathers and communicates to widely different target groups – from children to professionals in different sectors. It is a knowledge institution that offers a wide range of living and broad learning, adapted to different ages and suitable for all visitors, without forgetting guests with special needs.
The museum is a gene bank that preserves and cultivates old varieties of plants and animal breeds.'
In addition to The Green Museum, two other Danish representatives also won. These were JunkFood in the Nordic food for many category and Frederiksdal cherry wine in the Nordic raw material producer category.
