With the steadily rising incidence of lifestyle disorders tightening its grip on society, switching to healthier food alternatives has never been this crucial. The visionaries know that unhealthy eating could be our greatest undoing unless we act now. That is why an important campaign has now begun in earnest in the way of the new Healthy Food Initiative.
Developed under the guidance of HE Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, Chairperson of Qatar Museums, with the support of celebrity chef Alain Ducasse, the Healthy Food Initiative (HFI) is an innovative programme designed to increase awareness amongst Qataris about leading a healthier lifestyle.
At the recently held seventh edition of the Qatar International Food Festival (QIFF), a range of activities celebrated the launch of this much-needed healthy eating campaign; from a Healthy Food Show that packed in a full afternoon of panel talks, a debate with a leading nutrition expert and a conversation with Ducasse, to children’s workshops led by trained coaches and designed to educate youngsters on healthy eating, organic foods and leading a healthy lifestyle.
About the HFI, Sheikha Mayassa, during the event, said that the festival provides the “ideal opportunity” to highlight the relationship between food, healthy eating, exercise and well-being. “We are delighted that leading figures such as Valerie Espinasse and Alain Ducasse have chosen to back our initiative. With their involvement and support, we hope to engage as many people as possible in taking positive steps to eat well and lead a healthy lifestyle,” she said.
Qatar has one of the highest rates of adult obesity and diabetes in the world, and against this backdrop, the HFI aims to improve awareness and understanding amongst parents, teenagers and children on the importance of a balanced diet and eating well. The initiative seeks to highlight the link between being overweight, diabetes and other illnesses. It also conveys positive messages about healthy eating habits and demonstrates that healthy food can be easy and appealing too.
At the Healthy Food Show, doctor-nutritionist-detox diets expert Valérie Espinasse explained how we can improve health and well-being by simply changing some eating habits, and Ducasse, in conversation with journalist Sophie Menut, shared how we can balance great-tasting food with eating well, and how we must encourage children to eat healthy.
Earlier in the day, Community caught up with renowned French chef Ducasse, the most Michelin-starred cook on Earth – he holds 21 stars – to know more about his concept of healthy eating.
Q. You are regarded as the cornerstone of modern French cuisine. Have you always considered healthy eating as a cornerstone of your cooking?
A. The importance of combining healthy eating with cooking has continued throughout my entire career, and has been very much imprinted in my brain from my childhood. Having been raised on a farm and having grown up with a direct link with nature and my grandmother’s culinary delights, eating healthy has always been a companion to my cooking. As years have passed by, I have become more focused on the health aspect of food. Also, I am convinced that taste development is a significant lever for a good diet. Developing a wide and varied taste palette is the key to diversifying a healthy diet while enjoying it.
Q. Why did the HFI interest you?
A. To be part of this initiative, to be part of QIFF and to be open to the public, is particularly of interest to me because the attention to healthy eating is not a question related to haute cuisine or fine dining. It appeals to every style of cooking, in terms of restaurants. However, it’s also very interesting for me to especially talk to the people about my own experiences and about what we are doing here at IDAM (Ducasse’s first Middle-Eastern restaurant IDAM is in the heart of Doha’s Museum of Islamic Art). Healthy eating and healthy food habits are indeed a concern for everyone today and there are solutions for everyone. So I am not here only as a chef of high-end restaurants, but I am here to speak to the masses about the need to make healthier food choices. When I was approached, I had no hesitation to be part of this initiative because there needs to be greater consciousness on this subject and it’s never too late to talk about it.
Q. Do you think people in Qatar would respond positively to “healthier” food?
A. That’s why we are all here – to start raising awareness. As a chef, be it at Plaza Athénée (in Paris) or at our other restaurants, I have reduced sugar in our desserts by about 20 to 25 per cent. I have learnt and I can testify that our patrons derive immense pleasure in trying out this new recipe. So it’s about how you can successfully combine the pleasure of great-tasting food with healthy benefits that it has to offer. I have written various books and cooking lessons on this subject. Having worked on this for years, I can say that it’s best if we eat meat once a week. Basically, we should minimise the animal protein and enjoy our simple, regular meals more.
Q. French cuisine carries a perception of sophistication, but you have been known to simplify the complex. At what point do you know that you can’t simplify it further?
A. On this planet, let’s say you have a billion over-fed, and a billion under-fed people. If we don’t decide to do something or show that something needs to be done, this disparity will not change. And it has to change. So we need to learn to eat a different combination of food. We must opt from having the vegetables as the side dish to having animal protein as the side dish. We need to include more grains, vegetables, pulses, and fishes as part of our main dish. We must make this change in proportions. It would be good for our health and also the planet’s.
Q. Can you share your favourite story about encountering one of your countless fans?
A. Oh, there are many. But I would like to turn this question the other way around. I had the pleasure of meeting Sebastião Salgado (noted Brazilian social documentary photographer and photojournalist) a couple of months ago. It was a great honour for me. Through his amazing pictures, Salgado shared with me his experiences of the work he has been doing in the Amazon rainforest in Brazil. I was extremely impressed by him, as a person. I realised, more than at any other time, how important it is now to become a real actor on this subject of consuming more ethically and more fairly and make a difference. By sharing those photos and experiences, Salgado showed that we cannot remain mute spectators to whatever goes on. I, too, have a voice on this subject of food and I have the opportunity to be heard about what I have been doing in this arena. I’d like to believe that my talk and my sharing of ideas all over the world will lead to positive consequences.
Alain Ducasse, second from left, at the launch of Healthy Food Initiative at IDAM.
