MILAN — Artur Gomes from Portugal has been named the recipient of the prestigious S.Pellegrino Social Responsibility Award voted for by the Sustainable Restaurant Association.
The prize, one of three collateral awards of the competition, is given to the chef whose signature dish best interprets the principle that food is better when it’s the result of socially-responsible practices, conveying a powerful message of sustainability.
Gomes stood out among the 15 sustainability-minded young chefs that won the prize in their respective regions, winning the global title with his “Vale das Lobas” celeriac’ signature dish.
“I’m honoured to have received this recognition that’s so important to me,” says Gomes. “Social responsibility should be a collective commitment that goes beyond our restaurant. With my dish, I wanted to show how sustainability should start from our communities, our artisans and the region. My hope is that through sustainable constructions, re-generative farming and resource management, we’re not only re-generating this land but also this community.”
“We’re proud to assign this edition’s award to Artur Gomes. Providing a picture of Portugal’s rural northern landscape, the dish not only champions hyper-local ingredients, but also showcases re-generative agricultural processes that are being introduced with soil health and climate in mind,” says Juliane Caillouette Noble from the Sustainable Restaurant Association. “Artur understands that social responsibility must go hand-in-hand with financial and environmental responsibility if restaurants are to continue to attract the best young talent and provide an inspiring and positive work environment.”
Additionally, the S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy recently provided all regional finalists with the opportunity to participate in a series of inspiring workshops to explore the most relevant topics for the industry. During 360° sustainability, young chefs competing for the award had the chance to engage in insightful discussions with esteemed members of the international chef community, including Kamilla Seidler, Jeffrey Vella, Suzanne Barr and Daniel Gottschlich, as well as Molly McDonald and Isabel Martin from the Sustainable Restaurant Association.
“While environmental sustainability is of course a hot topic, what engaged guests the most across these workshops was the issue of human sustainability and creating a better, fairer and safer industry for all,” says Tom Jenkins, Fine Dining Lovers journalist and Academy spokesperson. “Many senior chefs discussed the changes they’ve made to their teams’ working practices and how they’ve adjusted their business models, whilst our young chefs emphasised just how important work-life balance is now to their generation. A happy team equals a happy restaurant.”
