WorldWild Podcast
Episode 21 13th September 2019
Places You Know with Thomas Laursen
The search for truth and how wild food can lead us there; in the process of searching, we try to hold on to some form of a north star to guide us in a graceful and authentic way forward. We are joined by Danish forager, speaker, TV chef, and speaker Thomas Laursen to seek that star. He is a trained teacher and passionate about wild food and the possibility of it to engender a new sense of empathy for nature and our place within it. We are as he says: animals.
In this raw and open discussion on working in wild food, Thomas and Miles discuss forager fear-of-missing-out (FFOMO), empathy in food production, 'green-washing', how to move from imagination and entertainment toward engagement, and the story of foraging for orange carpenter ants...
'We don’t need to make nature, we just need to step back, it will happen'
- Thomas Laursen, episode 21
About Thomas Laursen
Thomas Laursen, the man they call ‘ant-man’ - he supplied orange carpenter ants to NOMA in 2011 which started his full-time career in wild food supply – is a forager, chef, speaker, teacher and wild food supplier based in Silkeborg, Denmark. It was a chance meeting with the acclaimed restaurant’s deputy head that started out as a trade of a few edible mushrooms and soon became a partnership. After the debut of the ants in NOMA, he soon found his hobby and passion becoming his livelihood. As he says: ‘Many perceive me as a first mover, as part of a gastronomical movement. However, the truth is, I look to the past, I follow in the footsteps of our ancestors’. Balancing the past and future; Thomas continues to bring his passion to plates.
Further reading
> More about Thomas and his work at Wild Fooding
> Mentioned in episode: Tor Nørretranders talk 'From Wild to Tame and Back Again' on YouTube
> Mentioned in episode: 'Ant Highway' video on YouTube
> Mentioned in episode: Blog by WorldWild Podcast producer Joel: 'Bewilder'
> Mentioned in episode: 'Won't Get Fooled Again' by The Who
About the show
We offer a series of conversations to tap into the wildness within ourselves and to uncover what is possible when we do. It is our hope that through the WorldWild Podcast we can contribute to the revitalisation of wild food culture and conversation around the world.
Through people who know their landscapes intimately, we gather the threads to weave a rich tapestry. Piece by piece the vision of a wilder world comes into view. The wild embrace of nature welcomes us back and offers us a seat at the table. A feast, no less!
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Cactus Calls the Rain with Mark Lewis | 4th July 2019
The Story of Weeds with Philip B. Stark | 2nd August 2019
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