Princess Marie gives interview to Jutland’s newspapers about ‘Food with Respect’ cookbook

While Prince Joachim, Princess Marie and their two children spent at least part of the two-weeks autumn holidays in Denmark at Schackenborg Castle, Princess Marie gave an interview about the “Food with Respect” cookbook that was published in the major newspapers in Jutland. The article is available online behind a paywall but you can read all of Princess Marie’s quotes below.

We know that especially families throw out the most food, so it is here – at home with everyone – that a concrete and big difference can be made, and I really hope the book can inspire greater respect for food while helping families get a little more creative. It’s not that difficult to avoid food waste, however, there are so many good reasons to do so!

Princess Marie

A third [of all food in the world ends up being wasted]! It is, after all, absurd. Especially knowing that the amount could be used to feed all hungry people. That alone is a strong argument for fighting food waste. At the same time, it is a waste of important resources when we throw out food. You have to remember that the goods you buy in the supermarket have been on a long journey before they end up on our plates. It is food that has been grown, harvested, processed, packed and transported. All of this is something that has an impact on the environment. So it really makes no sense to buy more than we need. And it is not complicated. It doesn’t cost anything either. On the contrary, you save money.

princess marie

My mother was born in 1945, and when you grow up in a country that has been at war and where the lack of food has been so pronounced and violent, it becomes part of the upbringing for many generations to come. It simply lies as an instinct in one, whether one is wealthy or not. And that was also evident with my mother. She wasn’t scrawny. She just couldn’t dream of wasting food. At that time, there was nothing known about how food waste affects the climate. It was more about a basic moral respect for resources

There must have been something in the trash once in a while, but the starting point was that nothing should be thrown out. We were a very culinary family who appreciated simple but good food and at the same time the meals were an important gathering point in the family. That, again, has to do with respect. My mother did not stand in the kitchen for an entire hour to watch her children disappear from the table after two seconds. You had to stay and eat together, and this was also the occasion for talking together. You get caught up in everyday life and forget to talk together, but it is important to do so, and here the meal is an excellent opportunity. [My mother] now goes to the kitchen with the grandchildren and uses yesterday’s leftovers in a whole new way, and it tastes even better.

Basically, it’s not about taking anything for granted. You never know what’s going on. So you have to have respect for what you have and experience here and now. Whether it is food on the table or the love you have in your family. The gratitude comes right after. I am grateful for an incredible amount of things, though I could be even more so. I really do not take anything for granted, but sometimes – if you have had a bad day or bad experience – then I could probably be better off being grateful for everything I have. But maybe it is also to some extent cultural. I think in Denmark it is good to be grateful. My husband, for example, is always positive and satisfied. He could never dream of complaining about small things. But of course it also helps that Denmark is a country where so much works well.

I always look in the fridge before we shop. It’s not always me shopping, but it’s always me who reminds me not to buy too much. It is something to see what you have and use it, and then it does not matter if you want something completely different. That’s what we have, that’s the starting point, and it’s good stuff, so there’s no need to complain.

 I think it is incredibly important that children come into the kitchen and take part in shopping, but also that we talk to them about respect for food. We have always done this, and both children not only want to help, they are also good at finding solutions for how to use the food, and scold me if I get to throw out something we can still eat . We also eat together almost every night, and here we talk about everything from their school day to the world’s challenges, so they are both curious and conscious.

The article mentions that their new home in Paris is close to a market so the children often go shopping there with their parents.

A very obvious place is in relation to our children and young people. I strongly believe in education and both in relation to my own children and the children I meet when I am out, I experience a desire for change and a curiosity, and it is our responsibility to help them. For example, with more teaching materials in schools. After all, it is our children who are the future. They are the ones who can save what we have destroyed, and the positive is that they actually want to get involved.

A cookbook may not seem revolutionary, but you have to start somewhere, and an obvious and easy place to start is in the kitchen and when we shop. All contributions count, and together we can make a big difference.

The article also says that the increased attention given to climate challenges in recent years has only strengthened Princess Marie’s commitment to the fight against food waste, and she even mentions the climate several times during the interview. 

For this interview, Princess Marie repeated the purple knit top she wore last May with a new skirt. She also wore her Jimmy Choo ‘Romy’ black suede pumps and her Christine Hvelplund alphabet ‘M’ ring.

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