Meyer is widely regarded as the founder of the New Northern Cuisine philosophy. The New Northern Cuisine movement seeks to respect the region’s roots in agriculture, strengthen local agriculture, use sustainable production methods, and create foods that have a unique place among the world’s cuisines.
In 2016, Meyer and chef René Redzepi co-founded a restaurant called Noma in Denmark. The Noma restaurant was to be a working laboratory and kitchen for the ideas of the New Northern Cuisine movement. The Noma restaurant has been awarded two Michelin stars and has been named “the best restaurant in the world” 4 times – in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014.
IKEA recently held its Democratic Design Days conference in Almhult, Sweden, where it showcased its eco-friendly vegan meatballs, which are made from pea protein, pea starch, potato flakes, oats and apple, but are said to look and taste like meat.
The food was made not only for vegans, but also for those who want to reduce their environmental impact. For example, milk-free ice cream, which was launched by IKEA in Malaysia and parts of Europe, produces only half of the carbon footprint of milk ice cream. In addition to this ice cream, IKEA already serves vegan meatballs, oatmeal smoothies, vegan hot dogs, vegan gummies and vegan caviar.
New IKEA menu
According to Meyer, a “broader overhaul” of the IKEA menu is currently being prepared: “It has to do with basic menu design. I think that we will not offend anyone if we take a few dishes from the basic Swedish assortment and come up with dishes that are even tastier and healthier for the whole world.”
Meyer added that it is “cheaper to feed a population with a diet of organic vegetables than it is to feed the same population with a diet of normal amounts of the lowest quality meat in the world.” “So you can go from a typical meat-based diet to a plant-based diet that is 100% organic without spending more money on food,” he said. Meyer acknowledged that there will be some customers who will resist the new menu, but believes that “things will change over time.”