Sharon de Miranda: Tastemaker with a mission

For TV chef and food innovator Sharon de Miranda, food is about more than just taste. From her first children's cooking studio to her role as Food Innovation expert at Flevoland province, her culinary journey is infused with passion and a mission. Sustainability is central to this. Whether it's local ingredients, circular cooking or a future-proof menu for the catering industry, De Miranda shows how the food sector can contribute to a better world. "Food is more than a dish on your plate. It is a story, a connection, an opportunity to make an impact."

Sustainability on the menu: cooking for the future according to Sharon de Miranda

With a laugh, TV chef Sharon de Miranda says: "My first words were not 'daddy' or 'mummy', but 'happie, happie'." Food has always been her passion, and that hunger for more has never gone away. From cooking with grandma in the kitchen to developing sustainable menus - De Miranda's journey into the culinary world

Miranda's love of cooking started small, but soon became big. A school outing to a children's cooking studio changed everything. "We got to cook for parents and I immediately felt: this is it!" That one experience fanned a fire that would never leave her. De Miranda trained as a chef in Curaçao, but it was in Amsterdam that her culinary horizons really broadened. "In French cuisine, I learned techniques that were new to me. And I discovered ingredients I had never heard of before, like truffle. It was a world full of new flavours and possibilities."

Cooking with a mission

With stars in her eyes, De Miranda began her career. "My dream was always to get a Michelin star, but I ended up looking for more social meaning in my work," she says. She found that meaning in healthcare, where she worked in psychiatry and with people with disabilities. Still, cooking continued to attract her. Inspired by Jamie Oliver's TV programmes, she decided to combine her two passions - cooking and helping people. BinnensteBuiten offered her that opportunity. "After my first pitch, I was allowed to do a three-month trial run. We are now ten years on!"

Sustainability on the board

As Senior Project Manager Area Development and Expert Food Innovation at Flevoland Province, De Miranda currently focuses on the future of our food. During Floriade, she ran a restaurant with a sustainable menu based on the EAT-Lancet diet. "In a nutshell, that diet is 80% vegetable and 20% animal. So it is not only healthy for humans, but also for the earth."

Flevoland turned out to be a hidden treasure trove. "We have quinoa, ginger, garter... really everything!" De Miranda's goal is to put local ingredients more on the map. "Why use olive oil when in the Netherlands rapeseed oil is there for the taking? By cooking with the seasons and thinking locally, you make an impact."

The story behind food

For De Miranda, food is more than fuel; it is a story that connects people. "Hotels can bridge the gap between local entrepreneurs and guests. Put local products on the menu and tell the farmer's story. People love that and are even willing to pay more for a dish with a good story."

She finds that smaller accommodation such as bed and breakfasts in particular are already experimenting with this. "But big hotels have so much potential. Let your staff go out for a day to explore the region. That makes for creative dishes and enthusiastic guests."

De Mirada's advice to hotels looking to cook sustainably? Start with seasonal ingredients. "Make a sauce from red fruit in summer and take it out of the freezer months later in game season. That way you combine flavours from different seasons and reduce waste."

Start small, think big

For De Miranda, the message is clear: food is a powerful tool to change the world. "Hotels can really set an example. Show that sustainable and local food is not only better for the planet, but also for your guests." With her boundless energy and broad experience, De Miranda knows how to convince everyone. "Food is more than a dish on your plate. It is a story, a connection, an opportunity to do something beautiful. When you understand that, every meal becomes more valuable."