CleverRoot

7 6 | t h e c l e v e r r o o t IN THE UNITED STATES, we celebrate the culinary industry through mega-events largely organized by restaurant associations: trade shows, expos, and conferences often defined by flashy booths, branded trinkets, long lines, hashtags, and plenty of networking. If the Copenhagen-based nonprofit MAD is any indication, the Danish take a different approach. While it draws its name from the Danish word for food, pronounced like "mehld," the organization is pronounced "mad" as a nod to Redzepi's self-described "crazy" idea to as- semble leading chefs under a big circus tent to discuss issues facing the restaurant industry at the inaugural symposium in 2011. Held on Copenhagen's Refshaleøen peninsula, the event now draws roughly 600 people and has expanded to include intimate breakout sessions, as well as satellite events every other year. In the years since its inception, MAD has defined itself as a global cooking community united by a desire for change. While chef René Redzepi may run the kitchen at one of the world's most exclusive restaurants, Noma, he's built an organization that's anything but, as MAD strives to open its doors to anyone invested in defining the GLOBAL REPORT Straight to the Heart WE GO BACKSTAGE AT THE MAD SYMPOSIUM IN COPENHAGEN AS EXPERT STORYTELLERS UNPACK GLOBAL FOOD POLICY by Becky Tsadik / photos by Jason Idris Alami Chef Palisa Anderson (third from left, first row) is flanked by a team of cooks at the sixth annual MAD Symposium in Copenhagen in August. Anderson is a second- generation restaurateur at Chat Thai, Boon Cafe/Jarern Chai Asian Grocers, Assámm, and Samorson (all located in Sydney, Australia), as well as a first-generation farmer at Boon Luck Farm in New South Wales, Australia. Not your typical conference breakfast: MAD Symposium guests enjoyed Anderson's vibrant khao yum, a dish of mixed rice and grains with soft-boiled egg, prawn floss, and herbs dressed with caramelized palm sugar and fermented fish garum. Contractors and volunteers transformed an open field on Copenhagen's Refshaleøen peninsula into a tent city of food and drink for the MAD Symposium. The daily symposium breakfast featured fresh loaves from Richard Hart, former head baker of Tartine in San Francisco. Hart recently opened Hart Bageri bakery in Copenhagen's Frederiksberg neighborhood.

• Cover