Food for change

Massimo Bottura is more than a Michelin star-winning chef. Together with Lara Gilmore, he also founded Food for Soul, a non-profit organisation seeking to reduce food waste through inclusion.
On the occasion of Expo 2015 in Milan and working in concert with Caritas Ambrosiana, Massimo Bottura opened Refettorio Ambrosiano, a new kind of community canteen where chefs from around the world cooked nutritious meals for socially vulnerable guests using surplus ingredients recovered from the Expo's pavilions. The project's success led Bottura to found Food for Soul in 2016 aimed at replicating the model in other communities. Since then, Refettorio Gastromotiva in Rio de Janeiro, Refettorio Felix in London, Social Tables in Modena, Bologna and Naples, and Refettorio Paris in the French capital have all opened their doors. Further canteens are planned across the globe.
This is the ninth essay in the Big Ideas series created by the European Investment Bank.

Massimo Bottura (1962) opened Osteria Francescana in Modena in 1995. An innovator and restaurateur for over twenty years, Bottura has consolidated his reputation as one of the world's most creative culinary figures. His internationally renowned three-Michelin-star restaurant, Osteria Francescana, was awarded the number one spot in the "World's 50 Best Restaurants" list in 2016 and for the second time in 2018.
In 1986, Massimo Bottura set out on his life's journey when he bought Trattoria del Campazzo on the outskirts of Modena. Working alongside the rezdora Lidia Cristoni and applying techniques learned as an apprentice to French chef Georges Coigny, he built his culinary foundations on a combination of regional Italian cooking and classical French training. In 1994, Bottura sold Campazzo and moved to Monte Carlo to work with Alain Ducasse at Le Louis XV. This experience proved invaluable for the chef and led to the opening of Osteria Francescana a year later in his hometown of Modena. Several years on, Bottura enjoyed another lifechanging experience with Ferran Adrià at El Bulli during the summer of 2000.
Bottura's kitchen walks a fine line between tradition and innovation. His dishes explore the deep roots of Italian cuisine while making references to history, art and philosophy. In 2002, Bottura received his first Michelin star followed by a second in 2006. Among numerous awards, he received the prestigious "Grand Prix de l'Art" from the International Culinary Academy in Paris in 2011, and a third Michelin star, confirming the achievement of a life-long ambition. Osteria Francescana has ranked at the top of Italian food guides for the past five years.
Massimo Bottura has also been recognised for his commitment to fight against food waste and social isolation, calling for social responsibility among the culinary community. During the Expo 2015 world fair, the chef created an off-site project called the Refettorio Ambrosiano, a community kitchen where chefs from around the world joined him to transform surplus food from the exhibition into healthy meals for those in need. Motivated by the success of the project, Massimo founded the non-profit organisation Food for Soul together with his wife, Lara Gilmore. Since then, Food for Soul has established another five projects: Refettorio Gastromotiva in Rio de Janeiro, Refettorio Felix in London, Social Tables in Modena and Bologna, and most recently, Refettorio Paris.
On 6 February 2017, Massimo Bottura received a prestigious honorary Business degree from the University of Bologna. Dean Francesco Ubertini stated, "Massimo Bottura's work spans the fields of entrepreneurship, education and technique, and represents a virtuous example of the promotion of Italian culture and the 'Made in Italy' label." This was the first laurea honoris causa awarded to a chef in the history of the university. On 12 April 2018, the Academy of Fine Arts of Carrara also awarded Bottura a diploma honoris causa in Arts.
The energetic and ever curious chef lives in his beloved hometown, Modena, located in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy with his wife, Lara Gilmore, and their two children, Alexa and Charlie.