Food Adventures: 2016 James Beard Foundation Conference

The 2016 James Beard Foundation Conference brought together a mix of chefs, analysts, corporate consultants, activists and trendsetters for the seventh annual edition of the symposium, held in NYC in late October. The topic “Now Trending: The Making of a Food Movement” explored, well, trends in food movements. Some parts were inspirational like Lucas Benitez and Greg Asbed from the Coalition of Immokalee Workers. Others were not as as stimulating such as Campbell Soup’s move to make healthier canned foods. Of course, there was a decent spread of food throughout the day and a half event. Here’s a peek.

Sara Ventiera is a roaming eater and traveler who looks for amusing stories across the United States. She works from New York, Los Angeles and various places in between. Her work has appeared in theVillage Voice, New York Daily News, Zagat, FoodNetwork.com and more.

1 of 24 Tim Gunn, educator, author and Project Runway mentor discussed the parallels between fashion and food trends. "Trend forecasters all contradict themselves," he said. "If you're just chasing trends, you're a fashion victim." Photo by Kent Miller Courtesy of the James Beard Foundation

2 of 24 Paco Underhill, CEO and Founder, Envirosell; Author of Why We Buy, Call of the Mall, and What Women Want said, "The driving force in modern consumption, whether buying food or fashion, is time. When people are asked if they feel more time poor or money poor, the answer is always time." Photo by Kent Miller Courtesy of the James Beard Foundation

3 of 24 Conference guests were asked to analyze food trends according to technology consultancy Gartner's Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies. Photo by Kent Miller Courtesy of the James Beard Foundation

4 of 24 Guests had to figure out where trends and issues fall on the curve of general awareness and behavior change, starting with an Awareness Trigger, moving up to the Peak of Inflated Enthusiasm (i.e. veganism and food waste activism), moving down to the Trough of Disillusionment (meal kits may be sliding down), then up again through the Slope of Enlightenment (grass fed and antibiotic-free meats), then Mainstream Awareness/Behavior Change (think: bringing canvas totes to the grocery store). Photo by Kent Miller Courtesy of the James Beard Foundation

5 of 24 After the morning speakers and activities, attendees got to break with a spread of carrot juice, Might Green Smoothies, salmon blinis and chocolate cookies. Photo: Sara Ventiera

6 of 24 The salmon blini featured guajillo-infused cured salmon with creme fraiche, caper powder and chervil. Photo: Sara Ventiera

7 of 24 JBF Award-Winning Chef http://hughacheson.com/restaurants.html>Hugh Acheson (Five & Ten, The Florence) and Karen Karp, president of Karen Karp & Partners welcomed everyone back from lunch. Photo by Kent Miller Courtesy of the James Beard Foundation

8 of 24 Anna Lappe, author, founder of Real Food Media and 2016 JBF Leadership Award Honoree, asked "How do we communicate messages in a sound bite media culture?" Photo by Kent Miller Courtesy of the James Beard Foundation

9 of 24 Gunn, James Truman, co-owner Nix and former editorial director Conde Nast Publications and JBF executive vice president Mitchell Davis discussed the intersection of fashion, food and media. Talking about the general public's evolving interests, Truman said, "After second stock crash in '08, food and chefs seemed authentic to the moment in the way fashion and designers had 10 years earlier." Photo by Kent Miller Courtesy of the James Beard Foundation

10 of 24 Journalist Bill Buford (author of Heat) and actor, journalist and JBF award-winning cookbook author Madhur Jaffrey debated the notion that, in food, novelty is what matters, not tradition. Standing for tradition, Jaffrey won the debate: "Almost every word that Bill said was an argument for tradition. He loves hunting deer and turkey. He loves cooking the meat of these animals. There is nothing at all new about that." Photo by Kent Miller Courtesy of the James Beard Foundation