How does the food production chain work for a truly Brazilian style of taste?
Today many gourmets or even professionals do not recognize one fish from the other. Fish is produced on an industrial scale. When I use a fish from the Amazon I look for the same differences an Italian looks for when choosing a truffle from Umbria or from Piedmont, the subtle differences. I have been working for 6 to 7 years in Para and Amapa, relentlessly supporting artisan production and collecting practices in the rain forest, but have received very little support from politicians. The practice starts from the bottom but the financing has to come from the top. I see the need for collectors’ communities to be better paid for their work, associated with the desire to promote quality. The highest standards of gastronomy – a refinement of human culture – continue to be fundamentally dependent on the products of nature. Do you find consumers aware of their responsibilities in a new eco-gastronomy? Sometimes we hear people saying ‘I don’t eat red meat’ or ‘Oh, fois-gras!’, but they don’t
