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MAD Symposium

The MAD Symposium is an annual symposium held in Copenhagen, Denmark featuring presentations from chefs, farmers, academics, thinkers, and artists. The event is hosted by the MAD Food Organization, founded in 2011 by Danish chef René Redzepi, the founder of the Copenhagen-based restaurant, Noma. The two-day symposium takes place inside a circus tent along the waterfront of Refshaleøen. The audience for MAD consists predominantly of chefs, aspiring cooks, farmers, journalists, and other food service professionals.

Philosophy

MAD's purpose is to educate and raise awareness among modern chefs and food professionals, to better prepare them for the challenges and responsibilities that go beyond merely providing sustenance for a single meal. The symposium aims to feature speakers from diverse disciplines, offering different perspectives on food and culture while providing those in the kitchens with new knowledge and greater imagination.

Organization structure

MAD is a not-for-profit grassroots operation composed of a full-time team and collaborators spread throughout Europe, Australia, and the United States.

Main events

MAD4

The fourth MAD Symposium took place on 24th and 25th of August, 2014 and was co-curated by D.O.M. chef and founder Alex Atala.

Albert Adria — Chef, Spain
Alex Atala — Chef, Brazil
Anya von Bremzen — Journalist, Russia
Chris Cosentino— Chef, USA
Chris Ying — Journalist, USA
Christine Muhlke — Author, USA
Darina Allen — Chef, Ireland
Eric Schlosser— Journalist, USA
Eyvind Hellstrøm — Chef, Norway
Fulvio Pierangeli — Chef, Italy
Hervé This — Chemist, France
Isabel Soares— Activist, Portugal
Jeremiah Tower — Chef, USA
Julian Baggini — Philosopher, UK
Madhur Jaffrey — Author, UK
Olivier Roellinger — Chef, France
Paola Antonelli — Curator, USA
Paul Freedman — Historian, USA
Pierre Koffmann — Chef, UK/France
Ron Finley — Urban gardener, USA
Silvano Giraldin— Restaurant manager, UK
Tatiana Levha — Chef, France
Tatsuru Rai— Chef, Japan

MAD3

The third MAD took place on 25th and 26th August 2013, and was curated by Momofuku chef and founder David Chang and the editors of Lucky Peach magazine. The theme of the symposium was "guts."

MAD3 Speakers:

Alex Atala — Chef, Brazil
Vandana Shiva — Environmental Activist, India
Dario Cecchini — Butcher, Italy
Christian Puglisi — Chef, Denmark
Margot Henderson — Chef, United Kingdom
Sandor Katz — Fermentation Revivalist, USA
Jon Reiner — Author, USA
Pascal Barbot — Chef, France
Diana Kennedy — Author, Mexico/UK
Roy Choi — Chef, USA
Cynthia Sandberg & David Kinch — Farmer & Chef, USA
Heribert Watzke — Food Scientist, Switzerland
Martha Payne — Schoolgirl Activist, Scotland
Alain Ducasse — Chef, France
David Choe — Artist, USA
Josh Whiteland — Guide, Australia
Barbara Lynch — Chef, USA
Knud Romer — Author, Denmark
Daniel Klein & Mirra Fine — Activist Filmmakers, United States
Ahmed Jama — Chef, Somalia
Jonathan Gold — Writer, USA
Michael Twitty — Food Historian, USA
Jason Box — Glaciologist, USA/Denmark
Roland Rittman — Forager, Sweden

MAD2

The second MAD took place on the 1st and 2nd of July, 2012. The theme of the symposium was "appetite."

MAD2 Speakers:

Tor Nørretranders — Writer, Denmark
Roderick Sloan — Sea Urchin Diver and Ocean Explorer, Norway
David Chang — Chef, USA
Enrique Olvera — Chef, Mexico
Massimo Bottura — Chef, Italy
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall — Activist Chef, UK
Shinichiro Takagi — Chef, Japan
Andrea Pieroni — Ethnobiologist, Italy
Patrick Johansson — Butter Viking, Sweden
Dan Barber — Chef, USA
Chido Govera — Mushroom Farmer, Zimbabwe
Paul Rozin — Psychologist, USA
Anthony Myint & Danny Bowien — Mission Chinese Food, USA
Massimo Montanari — Historian, Italy
Rasmus Kofoed — Chef, Denmark
Nordic Food Lab — Denmark
Andrea Petrini — Writer, Italy
Wylie Dufresne — Chef, USA
Leif Sørensen — Chef, Faroe Islands
Fergus Henderson and Trevor Gulliver — Chef and Restaurateur, UK
Ferran Adrià — Chef, Spain

MAD1

The inaugural MAD took place on 27th and 28th of August, 2011. The theme of the symposium was "vegetation."

MAD1 Speakers:

Alex Atala — Chef, Brazil
Tør Norretranders — Writer, Denmark
Miles Irving — Forager, UK
Daniel Patterson — Chef, USA
Yoshihiro Narisawa — Chef, Japan
Hans Herren — Policymaker, Switzerland
Kamal Mouzawak — Community leader, Lebanon
Iñaki Aizpitarte — Chef, France
Thomas Hartung — Businessman, Denmark
Magnus Nilsson — Chef, Sweden
Jacqueline McGlade — Head of the EEA, UK
Ben Shewry — Chef, New Zealand
Stefano Mancuso — Biologist, Italy
François Couplan — Forager, France
Massimo Bottura — Chef, Italy
Søren Wiuff — Farmer, Denmark
Molly Jahn — Policymaker, USA
Michel Bras — Chef, France
Harold McGee — Writer, USA
David Chang — Chef, USA
Andoni Luis Aduriz — Chef, Spain
Gastón Acurio — Chef, Peru

Other events

MAD Mondays

To prompt discussion on a local level and include those outside of the restaurant trade in the MAD community, the organization stages MAD Mondays, a series of panel discussions on food culture.

In March 2014, MAD hosted a New York City edition, its first outside of Copenhagen. The talk was titled "What We Talk About When We Talk About Being a Chef," and took place at the Drawing Center, featuring Peter Meehan as moderator and Mario Batali, Gabrielle Hamilton, Bill Buford, Lee Hanson, and Riad Nasr as panelists.

MADFeed

The MADFeed is an online publication that extends the MAD conversation throughout the year. The platform hosts news and video from MAD events, as well as articles from the MAD team. Notable guests and features to these publishings include chefs Dan Barber and Margot Henderson, musician James Murphy, and artist Olafur Eliasson.