As many people know, Elettra Wiedermann is visiting Iceland for DesignMarch 2012. Few people know that she is the promoter of a very special restaurant, but the ingredients she uses are mostly local. The same is true of food factories that are making inroads around the world.
A meeting is currently taking place in Iceland about New Nordic Food and the meeting will take place at Matís' premises. Many good guests attend the meeting, including the owner and one of the founders of the most popular restaurant in the world in 2010 and 2011, NOMA - Nordic Cuisine. Claus Meyer, who together with René Redzepi, founded NOMA in 2004, is here for this meeting. The importance of Nordic cuisine and people's interest in it has seldom been greater. René is gracing the cover of TIME on March 26. and it is a sign of increased US interest in what the Nordic countries are doing in food and drink, especially when it comes to local food production and the full utilization of raw materials.
The importance of food factories is significant, not only here in Iceland but elsewhere, especially in the other Nordic countries. Most of our cousins have invested considerable sums in supporting food production from the local area, both for the development of tourism but also for creating added value that the sale of food itself creates. When looking at local food production, it is safe to say that little else contributes to the equally healthy development of the economy. Here we are creating value from a real product, not an imaginary product as we knew until the collapse in 2008. Local food production is extremely important for the economy of each region and each country, but also because of the countries' own image creation in a large context where full utilization raw materials are more often than not guided.
In Matís food factories, entrepreneurs and small businesses are offered the opportunity to develop products and start small-scale food production for a small rent. In this way, they save on investments in expensive equipment right from the start of operations. This provides a unique opportunity to continue testing oneself both in production and in the market. Special emphasis is placed on development in connection with local food and food tourism services.
The facility is intended for national use. The prerequisite for getting into the facility is to buy advice on good production methods in the beginning. In this way, users will learn the correct working methods from the beginning. The facility at Matarsmiðjan in Hornafjörður provides a unique opportunity for innovation in small-scale food production. A number of projects have already started in Matís' food workshops and there is a steady increase in interest in the workshops.
More about Goodness, Elettra Wiedermann's restaurant, can be found here and information on the NOMA restaurant can be found here.
For further information Steinar B. Aðalbjörnsson, marketing director of Matís.