An infinite love for the sea and a passion for culinary excellence are the cornerstones of the collaboration between Ángel León and Costa Cruises. This partnership extends beyond the menus and dishes created by the Spanish chef aboard the ships, now encompassing a pioneering project worldwide, groundbreaking for its environmental, social, and scientific aspects: the cultivation of "marine grain," which Ángel León and the Aponiente team are experimenting with in the Bay of Cádiz, Spain. This marine plant benefits the ecosystem by enriching its biodiversity, helps mitigate climate change by absorbing and storing large amounts of carbon, and, above all, is capable of producing, from its seeds, a "superfood" with exceptional nutritional properties, which could become the "food of the future.".
Thanks to the support of the Costa Cruises Foundation, research and development work on "marine grain" will be strengthened. Firstly, the cultivation area of the "marine garden" in the Bay of Cádiz can be expanded, increasing grain production.
Ángel León, known as the “chef of the sea” and awarded three Michelin stars for his restaurant Aponiente, is a leading innovator in haute cuisine. For over a decade, he has equipped Aponiente with a research and development center focused on incorporating new foods and other seafood products into the human diet. The goal is that one day people will be able to sustainably eat seafood that isn't necessarily fish, which is too often affected by overfishing.
In 2017, Aponiente launched a pioneering project worldwide to recover a native marine plant species, Zostera marina, in a 3,000 m² "ocean garden" in the Bay of Cádiz. But the true treasure of Zostera marina is its seed, renamed "sea grain" or "sea rice" by Ángel León, which can be eaten raw or processed into flour and related products such as bread and pasta. It is a food with significant nutritional properties: gluten-free, rich in omega-6 and omega-9 fatty acids, it has a higher quantity of high-quality protein and carbohydrates, and 2% less fat than terrestrial cereals. A "superfood," then, which, if properly refined, could be a key resource in the future for combating the hunger and malnutrition problems plaguing various parts of the world. Furthermore, its cultivation is sustainable because it can grow without fresh water or fertilizers. It is also much more productive and profitable than other types of land grains, and can become an economic asset for depressed areas, such as Cadiz, which is going through a deep economic and employment crisis.
“The sea is the greatest resource we have in nature. This is an idea that Costa and the Costa Cruises Foundation share with us, and it has led us to collaborate on this project,” stated Ángel León. “Thanks to their support, we will have the opportunity to further expand our initiative, hoping to provide concrete assistance to communities facing subsistence or economic hardship, while also contributing to the protection of the sea.”
Rossella Carrara, Global Vice President of External Relations and Sustainability for the Costa Group, commented: “We already had a partnership with Ángel León, sharing with him a deep love for the sea. It seemed natural to strengthen our synergy by supporting a project that fits perfectly with the areas of intervention of the Costa Crociere Foundation and with the values of Costa Cruises.”.
Among the Costa Crociere Foundation's projects closely linked to "seafood" are "Guardians of the Coast," an environmental education program to protect the Italian coastline, which has so far involved more than 400 schools and over 22,000 students and teachers. In the social sphere, the "Food Assistance" projects stand out, with more than one million meals already distributed to people in need thanks to the Foundation. These projects, as well as all of the Foundation's initiatives, are also supported through fundraising at the Archipelago restaurants aboard the Costa fleet, which offer signature menus by Bruno Barbieri, Hélène Darroze, and Ángel León. Costa was also the first to launch a unique program in the maritime sector, called "4GOODFOOD," which has reduced food waste on board by 35%, enabling its reuse for social purposes and raising awareness among guests and crew about the value of food.
The Costa Cruises Foundation is an independent, non-profit organization whose objective is to generate social and environmental improvement in the communities visited by Costa ships on their itineraries, promoting and developing the values of the Costa Group through the management and funding of environmental and social projects of common interest. Since its creation in 2014, the Costa Cruises Foundation has a total of 30 environmental and social projects, which have benefited more than 100,000 people from over 130 different nationalities.
