For most Danes, tempeh is still a rather unknown food. But we are working dedicatedly to change that. That is why we are very pleased when someone talks or writes about CONTEMPHEHRARY and our products. For a foodtech startup like us, praise and prestigious awards help pave the way and give us even more good energy to do the work. Fortunately, we get a lot of good publicity - so many thanks for that!
We think it might also be interesting for you to know what others think. Things that emphasize the quality and illustrate the possibilities of Nordic Tempeh. Therefore, we would like to share some of the highlights with you here...
'The very best, perhaps even the best snack of the year so far, was a deep-fried tempeh, ... ,Lille B's tempeh, which is produced by Contempehary in Annebergparken in Nykøbing Sjælland, is made from split peas. The crispy "pea bread" was topped with leafy mayo, citrus-pickled kohlrabi, deep-fried fir and on top of it all a generous portion of grated Julsø Maestro cheese. An extremely tasty and complete snack that just had the whole package.'
Thus wrote the legenadary food critic Søren Frank in the 'Berlingske' newspaper, when he reviewed LilleB (Michelin star restaurant 'Formel B's pop up at Lillero), in July 2022 and gave five out of six possible stars. He is known - and a little bit feared - for his sharp pen, so we were really thrilled for this unexpected and distinguished mention!
Every summer, when Denmark's best chefs meet on Bornholm for the prestigious cooking competition 'Sol over Gudhjem', an equally prestigious food prize is also awarded.
The finalists for Sol over Gudhjem are selected from the many nominees by an awe-inspiring panel of judges. So it is with a fair amount of pride that we can say that we have been selected as a finalist, two years in a row (for our tempeh and our condiments).
We won the innovation award in 2021 and were close in 2022, we have heard. Regardless, Sol over Gudhjem is a fantastic guarantor of good taste and it has been an honor to participate twice!
Both products (tempeh and condiment) scored 20 out of 20 possible points for taste, texture and appearance. Therefore they were both awarded with the gold medal and titled 'Best in Class' at the Nordic Artisan Food Awards 2022, which were held in Stockholm.
A large panel of judges, from all over the Nordics, was gathered and tasted products all day long. All products were represented completely anonymously. Therefore, no one knew that both of the top scores were our products, until it was revealed on stage. It was a little overwhelming to go on stage twice to receive gold medals - but pretty cool!
As motivation, the panel of judges wrote these statements:
The Nordic Artisan Food Awards is a joint Nordic award ceremony for the best of Nordic food craftsmanship, which is held every two years. It is organized by an association of Terra Madre Nordic and Slow Food in the Nordics, with support from the Nordic Council of Ministers.
Our products are developed and produced with a focus on the best raw materials and with great care. We call it 'premium tempeh' because the taste and texture are of special quality.
But basically, tempeh is an ingredient - from which it is up to the chef, to create best tasting dishes and experiences. That is why we are super happy about all the collaborations we have with extremely talented chefs.
And it fells great to receive recognition from the best of the best... E.g. from Jeppe Foldager, head chef at the Michelin restaurant ‘Dragsholm Castle Gourmet’ (Dragsholm Slot Gourmet):
'It is fantastic to have a producer like CONTEMPHEHRARY in our backyard. Because these are world-class products and it expands our taste palette of local ingredients'.
'The largest sustainability award in the Nordics' - this is how the SDG Tech Awards describe themselves. And we were nominated in 2022 with the following motivation:
CONTEMPEHRARY is founded on a desire to use innovation to create sustainable solutions and tasty plant-based foods. That's why it's also nice to have a little spotlight on us from a sustainable food-tech angle.
The Nordic food awards - EMBLA - are awarded every two years. It is a meeting between all the Nordic countries, where inspiration and good examples from the Nordic food scene are exchanged.
In 2021/2022, we were chosen to represent Denmark in the category 'Food Entrepreneur of the Year', when the awards were handed out in Oslo. On that occasion, EMBLA wrote, among other things:
Unfortunately, we were not allowed to bring taste samples with us to Oslo and the assessment was made during a closed meeting, which we did not participate in.
First place went to Sweden and a producer of ice-cider that grows its apples north of the Arctic Circle (a project that is a little up-hill). For many years people thought he was crazy, but he has succeeded, so congratulations to him. We were happy to participate and wave the banner together with Denmark's food. leaders.
