Raymond Blanc: British cuisine catching up with French

Raymond Blanc, the chef, says France is "losing its strong food culture, while Britain is gaining one"

As well as simply food’s monetary value, he said that in Britain there was a growing acknowledgement of its impact on health. Photo: AFP

By Jasper Copping

The Telegraph - 20 Oct 2013

He is perhaps France’s most famous export to Britain and the best-placed authority on the comparative strength of the two nation’s food cultures.

So when Raymond Blanc says he believes that his homeland is a fading gastronomic power, while his adopted country is in the ascendant, it is a view which carries some weight.

The chef, who moved to the UK in the 1970s, said this country’s attitude to food was changing, with a growing appreciation of the importance of quality produce. It meant that, despite all the natural factors in its favour, France was “losing its strong food culture, while Britain is gaining one”.

Blanc, owner of the two Michelin starred Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons, in Oxfordshire, added: “France has a number of advantages in food, like its climate, its geography, the knowledge and craft which has grown up over hundreds of years. It also has its history and its revolution which meant that it made food for everyone. 

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