The two-day conference wrapped up Friday afternoon with a Fermentation Festival where attendees gathered in the courtyard of the Clark Center to sample food and beverages from a variety of vendors.

Attendee Impressions

I asked some of the attendees to share their impressions of the conference.

The best thing about this conference is… it’s the most interesting conference I’ve ever been to, and that says enough.

– Alain, Denmark

The best thing about this conference so far has definitely just been the interchange of ideas between everyone. It’s good to see a whole bunch of people from the culinary side versus the academic side versus the industrial side of things all getting together and discussing how we can make fermented foods better and more accessible to everyone.

– Matt, Fermented Food Holdings, Madison, WI

My big takeaway from the conference is that we really learn and integrate information best with a group of really diverse people from different backgrounds and different experiences.

– Lauren, Brooklyn, NY

This conference has been incredibly refreshing to me. It’s one of the best conferences that I’ve actually ever been to. Really, that human storytelling element and the interface of the science, I think, is a key thing.

– Jeremy, Western Ontario, Canada

I’m a cancer epidemiologist, and my big takeaway from the conference is that fermented foods can potentially be beneficial for cancer outcomes, so I’m excited to follow that up in my research.

– Armen, Tampa, FL.

The most surprising thing I’ve heard about at the conference is that there’s no plant diet in the Arctic.

– Elizabeth, Cork, Ireland

I’m really inspired by this whole conference. I just learned so much about the interaction between insects and microbes, and that was really inspiring and made me think about what other kind of interactions like that there are around the world and throughout history.

– Luke, Wild West Ferments, Marin County, CA 

The most surprising thing I’ve heard at the conference is that miso was made in space.

– Tim, Santa Cruz, CA

I was super excited to hear people talking about the fact that fermented foods have such potential for health, but they also have to be delicious.

– Maria, Oakland, CA

The most surprising thing I’ve heard at the conference is the use of ants to produce yogurt. Very excited about that.

– Nate, Palo Alto, CA

The best thing about the conference is community.

– Andrea, Monterrey, Mexico Podcast

Hear what the attendees found of interest — from Arctic foods to ant yogurt there was something for everyone!

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