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Turkish chef Ebru Baybara Demir has been announced as the recipient of the prestigious Basque Culinary World Prize 2023.
The announcement was made at gastronomy summit ‘Traditions in Motion’, co-hosted by the Basque Culinary Center and chef Yoshihiro Narisawa in Tokyo, Japan.
The chef's social commitment on Turkey-Siria border
The award was granted to the Turkish chef for her decades long work in Mardin on the Turkey-Syria border to facilitate social integration, biodiversity and social development. Promoting responsible and regenerative practices at all levels of the food system to promote biodiversity and reduce waste, Baybara Demir is an advocate for local grain types and works to market regional products.
However, it is her tireless work to ease social integration on the border or Syria and Turkey, an area hit by the 2023 earthquakes that left over 50,000 dead and hundreds of thousands displaced, to nourish those in need and to use food as a means by which to bring people together. In the aftermath of the earthquakes, the chef provided thousands of hot meals through her Gönül Mutfaği network.
In her home city of Mardin, Baybara Demir sought to strengthen tourism infrastructure by encouraging women to turn their own kitchens into facilities to feed visiting tourists, empowering the female population and boosting the essential tourism economy. It is an example of how Baybara Demir operates, above all with a sense of compassion and humanitarian spirit, but also very astutely solving multiple problems through the use of food as a catalyst for social change.
Through her UNHCR project, the Harran Gastronomy School, Baybara Demir works to empower women and integrate Syrian refugees into Turkish society, providing employment opportunities.
Environmental activism is ever-present in her actions. She currently supports ‘From Soil to Plate’, promoting the use of local ancestral grains like sorgül, selling local products online and utilising waste fruit and vegetables from the Diyarbakır farmers’ market to make fertiliser.
“I am incredibly honoured and thankful to the Jury who deemed me worthy of the Basque Culinary World Prize, considered the Nobel of the gastronomy world,” said chef Baybara Demir. “This recognition emphasises the significant impact of food and cooking on people’s lives and societies. I learned this valuable lesson 25 years ago in Mardin, where a remarkable group of women believed in me. Ever since, my journey has been dedicated to initiatives that benefit individuals, the environment, and society, covering the entire food cycle from soil to plate and back again.”
The other entrepreneurs on the list
Chosen from a long list of inspiring food entrepreneurs and activists chef Baybara Demir was chosen of the recipient of the Basque Culinary World Prize 2023 by a jury chaired by chef Joan Roca (Spain) and made up of other renowned chefs such as Gastón Acrio (Peru), Michel Bras (France), Manu Buffara (Brazil), Dominique Crenn (France/USA), Trine Hahnemann (Denmark), Pia Leon (Peru), Narda Lepes (Argentina), Elena Reygadas (Mexico), Josh Niland (Australia), Yoshihiro Narisawa (Japan) and Thitid “Ton” Tassanakajohn (Thailand).
The Basque Culinary Jury ©Basque Culinary Center
Special Mention
Other chefs were named in the list of Special Mentions for their outstanding work in food.
Nicole Pisani
British chef Nicole Pisani, an accomplished chef and cookbook author, is recognised for her work to end child food poverty through her #EndChildFoodPoverty campaign and her work to improve school canteen output in 80 schools across the UK, reaching 30,000 children daily.
Heidi Bjerkan
Norwegian culinary star Heidi Bjerkan is recognised for her commitment to realising sustainability in her restaurant business in a practical, demonstrable way. Her various efforts have shown the benefits of the circular economy within the food system in Norway and further afield.
Jock Zonfrillo
The Basque Culinary World Prize also remembered the Scottish chef Jock Zonfrillo, a recipient of the prize in 2018, who tragically passed away this year.
“We mourn the tragic loss of Jock Zonfrillo and are committed to carrying forward his profound legacy: encouraging chef to utilise their expertise and resources to protect and nurture communities," said Joxe Mari Aizega, General Director of the Basque Culinary Center. We will continue to highlight the transformative power of chefs worldwide whose innovative mindset extends beyond the kitchen, fostering significant and positive transformations within their communities.”
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