Sang Hoon Degeimbre, L’air du temps

Sang Hoon Degeimbre, head chef of the two-star restaurant L’air du temps in Brussels, do you have any exciting, new sustainability ventures?

– For the past ten years, we’ve been located inside a large farm and we’re completely self-sufficient when it comes to vegetables. However, we use quit a lot of energy, so now we’re about to install 500 square metres of solar panels. That way, we will produce eighty-five percent of our energy. We have also invested a lot in a system that allows us to recycle water, collecting it in the field.

Where do you find your produce?

– All vegetables come from our own gardens, we have about four hundred species and only use seasonal produce. Although I was born in Korea, I don’t use any products from Asia – I even make my own soy sauce. We also have our own vineyard in collaboration with a guy who produces pinot noir. He’s let us work there and make our own wine.

Do you communicate your passion for sustainability to your guests?

– Yes, we speak a lot to our guests, explaining “why” and “how”. But if you want to make an impact, it’s necessary to keep the message short.