Business Booster 8 - The Belgian Tourist Office

Business
Booster8
A Green Revolution in Brussels and Wallonia
Welcome to the eighth of our annual Business Booster guides to Brussels and Wallonia, the French-speaking southern half of Belgium.
This year’s Booster is focusing on all things green. Not the green landscape of the Wallonian countryside or the rugged wilderness and
river valleys of the Ardennes, but the increasing efforts being made by the region’s travel and tourist industry to create green, sustainable,
environmentally-friendly facilities for visitors.
Climate change is arguably the biggest challenge facing the human race. It’s already impacting on our lives. Every time an iceberg breaks
up and melts into the Arctic Ocean, the sea level rises a notch. And as long as man has to plunder the earth’s finite resources to satisfy
his insatiable energy needs, each succeeding generation will be affected ever more acutely.
Many of us are responding to this crisis by changing our everyday habits. Tourists and business travellers can make a difference by
choosing the train instead of the plane, by selecting places to stay which have taken steps to reduce their carbon footprint, or by making
small personal sacrifices such as opting to re-use their hotel bath towels for an extra day or two, saving water, detergent and energy in the
process. In these pages, we’ll show you how Brussels and Wallonia are responding to the challenge – and how the local tourist industry
is changing its ways to create a more sustainable environment.
Brussels is one of the greenest capitals in Europe – in both
senses of the word. Along with Copenhagen it’s been
declared joint first of 30 European capitals for its
Zeebrugge
public environmental policy, and with its wealth
Ostend
of parks and gardens, it provides an
astonishing 40 square metres of green space
for every inhabitant. In Wallonia, a greening
programme has been underway since the mid1990s. In the towns and cities, green areas
and ‘biological corridors’ have been
incorporated into many public spaces where,
in the past, nature never got a look-in.
Lille
We hope our ‘Green Booster’ will stimulate your interest
in Brussels and Wallonia. If you’d like to know more, please
visit our website or contact our specialist travel unit for further
information and advice.
We’d also welcome feedback on this publication, so please let us
know what you think – and how you’d like us to promote Brussels
and Wallonia next time.
Brussels
Waterloo
Wavre
Liege
Spa
Tournai
Charleroi
Namur
Durbuy
Malmedy
Mons
Marche-en-Famenne
Dinant
La Roche-en-Ardenne
Rochefort
Mariembourg
Han-sur-Lesse
Bastogne
Chimay
Saint-Hubert
Bouillon
© WBT - Emmanuel Mathez
Weris, Durbuy © OPT - JL Flemal
Brussels Parc Du Cinquantenaire © Xavier Claes
Arlon
T R A V E L L I N G
G R E E N
I N
B R U S S E L S
Europe’s High-Speed Hub
For business and leisure travellers conscious of the damage which the jet engine and the motor car wreak on the
environment, the greenest way to travel long distances is by train – and Brussels lies handily at the heart of Europe’s
high-speed network. The centres of London, Paris, Cologne and Amsterdam can all be reached in less than two
hours. There are nine trains a day to and from London, and Eurostar’s ‘Green Travel’ programme enables passengers
to reduce their CO2 emissions without realising it. Ninety per cent of the disposable items used on board are
biodegradable or fully recyclable – and that includes the staff uniforms!
These Streets Are Made
for Cycling … and Walking
… and Jogging
There are many other green ways of getting around the
surprisingly compact capital. Cycling is fast becoming
the way to go in Brussels. All the main rail stations are
equipped with ‘Villo’ bike docking stations (just like
London’s ‘Boris bikes’) and there’s a docking station,
on average, every 450 metres throughout the city. The
Villo scheme (http://en.villo.be) is going from strength
to strength: in the first week of September alone there
was a record number of more than 41,000 rentals. Beat
that Boris!
Woluwe St Pierre Bruxelles © OPT - JL Flemal
Villo Bike in Brussels © OPT - JL Flemal
If you do travel to Brussels by air, the Airport Express train runs every 15 minutes to and from Brussels Nord, Central
and Midi stations. On arrival at Brussels Midi station, the furthest corners of the city are easily accessible by metro,
tram or bus. Instead of hiring a car or taking a taxi, visitors are encouraged to use public transport by purchasing the
inexpensive Brussels Card for 24, 48 or 72 hours. The card offers unrestricted travel anywhere on the network, as
well as free admission to more than 30 of the capital’s museums, and discounts at dozens of bars, restaurants,
designer boutiques and other stores.
The route options are endless. More than 40 miles
of dedicated cycle paths run alongside railway tracks
to ensure there are no steep climbs. Numerous oneway streets are restricted to cyclists only, and for short
journeys the ‘Villo’ scheme is ideal because the first
half-hour’s rental is free of charge. Groups such as Pro
Velo (www.provelo.be) and Cactus & Co (www.cactus-co.be) offer guided bike tours of the city, with themes ranging
from lifestyle and history to architecture and green spaces.
Parc De Woluwe © OPT-Xavier Claes
Your own two legs are, of course, the greenest means of transport there is, and Brussels is working hard to
accommodate the needs of walkers and joggers. Dedicated pedestrian routes now link various points of interest,
and new zones restricting cars to 20 mph (including the entire Pentagon area inside the old city walls) have greatly
improved road safety. The city has produced a useful map, called ‘TAPTAP’, showing the walking times between the
major landmarks and amenities, assuming a walking pace of about three miles an hour. If that’s a little on the slow
side for you, Brussels Sightjogging (www.brusselssightjogging.com) has a team of super-fit guides who take visiting
joggers around the city’s key landmarks at pace.
One of the most appealing features of Brussels is its wealth of greenery and wide open spaces. The city’s principal
‘lung’ is in the south, where the Forêt de Soignes extends for six miles from just inside the orbital motorway to the
edge of an upmarket shopping district. Home of much wildlife and a number of protected tree species, the forest
is criss-crossed with walks and cycle paths, all part of a ‘green loop’ of well-signposted trails (nearly 40 miles in all)
dotted with ponds, woods and marshes, and easily accessible by public transport. A series of cycle-dedicated lanes
and bridges has been constructed, extending all the way into the city without crossing a single main road. The loop
(www.promenade-verte.be) has won a number of tourism awards for imaginative use of urban space.
Segway to Go
20Km Marathon in Brussels © OPT-Alex Kouprianoff
Segway Tour in Brussels © Segway
A more adventurous way of exploring the city is on a Segway, a two-wheeled electric platform powered by a
rechargeable battery. Manoeuvring the device takes a little practice, but most people get the knack after a 10-minute
lesson, and are soon zipping effortlessly and economically about town, even on the uphill sections. The Brussels
Segwaytour (www.belgium-segwaytour.be) visits more than a dozen historic sites and buildings in an hour and
a half, taking in some little-known nooks and crannies beyond the scope of most other guided tours.
G R E E N
I N
W A L L O N I A
© Trekaventure
T R A V E L L I N G
Trek Adventure (www.trekadventure.be) has a team of multi-lingual and qualified
guides who take groups of up to 14 on the longer routes, either sticking to the wellestablished routes or using their local knowledge to wander off the beaten track. The
company offers a range of different itineraries in Wallonia’s finest walking regions,
and it can also help organise self-guided tours, booking accommodation and meals in
advance, providing maps and organising transfers at the begging and end of the hike.
Some walkers prefer not to be weighed down by heavy backpacks. The purists may
scoff at these so-called ‘softies’, but the softies argue that they can cover much more
ground without 30 kilos on their back. The walking company Europ’Aventure
(www.europaventure.be) can oblige them, offering a luggage transfer service on longdistance trails, as well as organising half-board accommodation and providing lunch
packs on request. Their most popular long-distance walk is the Transardennaise Trail,
which winds across the hills and plateaux of the Ardennes for about 100 miles, marked
with the company’s distinctive white-and-yellow signs. Another feature is its starshaped series of walks, following a different route each day but always returning to
the same hotel, saving all that irksome packing and unpacking every 24 hours.
An unusual feature of walking in Wallonia is the sudden appearance of ‘temporary
trails’ at the weekends. Signs suddenly appear, put up by local enthusiasts, and
disappear again by Monday morning. The Federation of Popular Walking
(www.ffbmp.be) welcomes visitors from overseas, especially the UK, who share their
passion for the great outdoors and bring a fresh perspective to their weekend outings.
Canal du Centre © OPT
Cycling
They may not always see
eye-to-eye, but walkers
and cyclists have much
in common: their chosen
pastimes are admirably
green, and they tend to
seek out similar places
to enjoy some exercise
and fresh air. In Wallonia,
they share the 600-mile
network of disused
railway tracks and canal
towpaths which have
been converted into
smoothly-paved,
predominantly flat new
routes to enhance their
enjoyment. The network,
known as RAVeL
(http://ravel.wallonie.be)
includes no gradient of
more than six per cent.
Randovelo (www.randovelo.org) is designed for serious cyclists who can tackle the
challenge of its 1,600-mile network of medium and long distance routes through the
relatively quiet roads of the Wallonian countryside. The German-speaking cantons in
the ‘far east’ near the German border have laid out their own 500-mile network,
including 18 themed routes catering for cyclist at every level, from families out for a
gentle afternoon spin, to sleek, Lycra-clad pedallers following the noble tradition of
Eddie Mercks, the multiple Tour de France winner and Wallonian sporting legend who
has inspired generations of young athletes to follow in his tracks.
Rail-biking
In Wallonia, we even
recycle old railway lines.
Instead of leaving
disused tracks to return
to nature, we’ve
introduced the pleasant
recreation of rail-biking,
which is done in a
purpose-built open
wagon seating four
people: two in the front
doing the hard work, and
two in the rear sitting
back and admiring the
scenery. Two picturesque
lines have been adapted
for the purpose: a 2½mile section alongside the Molignée river in the Dinant area (www.draisine.be) and
a 4½-mile section in the Hautes Fagnes (www.railbike.be) where you pedal between
one disused station and another, and back again. The return trip takes about three
hours. The rear seats, incidentally, can be removed to allow wheelchair-users to
enjoy the ride.
Haute Fagnes Rail Biking © Jo Jeanmart
Rural Wallonia is classic walking country, from long distance hiking routes of more
than 100 miles to short, undemanding rambles. The most challenging hikes are in the
Ardennes, the Hautes Fagnes and the Semois and Meuse river valley. These are ideal
for experienced walkers, but for those less sure of their map-reading skills it pays
to have an accredited guide.
Provelo (www.provelo.be) has bike stations at four provincial rail stations: Namur,
Mons, Ottignies and Liege Guillemins.
Segway
As in Brussels, the regional capital of Namur has introduced the Segway, creating a
sinuous circuit through the old town that takes around 90 minutes to complete and
passes all the important sites, including several fine viewpoints of the Meuse valley
below. Shorter Segway tours to the Citadel are available all year round, with multilingual guides on hand. More information, with prices, can be found at
www.segwaynam.be. Elsewhere in Wallonia, Segways can be hired at Eau d’Heure
lakes, the Molignée Valley and on some RAVeL routes.
Namur Citadel © ftpn.Bossiroy
Walking and Jogging
A C C O M M O D A T I O N
I N
B R U S S E L S
© Silken Berlaymont Hotel
G R E E N
The Green Key
One of the finest hotels in Brussels – the Art Deco-styled
Radisson Blu Royal - has been awarded the prestigious ‘Green
Key’ (www.cleverte.be), an international quality mark awarded
to 1,300 tourist establishments around the world in recognition
of their efforts to limit their carbon footprints. The Radisson Blu
Royal is environmentally conscious, right down to recycling the
corks of every wine bottle it opens, and impressing on its staff
the importance of using public transport. More than seven out
of 10 of them do. Every lightbulb in the hotel is low-energy. Guests are urged to re-use
their bath towels and hand in any used batteries or unused toiletries for recycling. All
hotel suppliers are encouraged to keep their packaging to a minimum. The Radisson’s
website (www.radissonblu.com) underlines the hotel’s waste-not-want-not philosophy,
based on the fact that half the world’s population live on less than £2 per day, and the
likelihood that by 2025 global food production will have to double to ensure there’s
enough to feed everyone: “We have the resources to make a change,” the Radisson
states – and it does, by donating a proportion of its profits to Third World
development programmes.
Another dozen of the capital’s hotels are vying for Green Key accreditation. Among
them is Dolce la Hulpe, a 4-star establishment with more than 1,000 photo-voltaic
panels that generate most of the energy it needs. The hotel has its own water
purification plant too, and uses LEDs instead of less efficient tungsten lightbulbs
wherever possible. Visitors get the sustainable message as soon as they enter the
lobby, where an ever-changing display screen shows, in real time, how much energy
the hotel is saving at any given moment.
Entreprise écodynamique
© BTO - Oliver Knight
Several guesthouses in the capital, and the Jacques Brel youth hostel, are also in
line for accreditation. At the end of next year, a floating youth hostel will open on the
Brussels canal, with nearly 200 beds and a large sun terrace. The wooden-framed
building will be low on energy use and big on recycling, reinforcing Brussels’
impressively green credentials in the accommodation sector.
© Hotel Dolce La Hulpe Brussels
Brussels has its own award system too, known as ‘Entreprise écodynamique,’
whereby commercial establishments of all kinds get between one and three stars
according to how energy-efficient they are. The Silken Berlaymont hotel has earned
three stars; eight hotels and the Sleep Well Youth Hostel have two stars; a further
six hotels have one star.
A C C O M M O D A T I O N
Wallonia’s commitment to a greener world is also being spearheaded by its leading hotels,
notably the Crowne Plaza Liège, Manoir du Lac near Waterloo, and Hotel Verviers in Spa.
This summer, a remarkable new hotel opened near Mons. The four-star Utopia Hotel
(www.utopia-hotel.com) in Masnuy-Saint-Jean uses the word passif to describe its
commitment to making as little impact on the immediate environment as possible. Making
use of natural ‘hot rocks’ energy produced by more than 80 geothermal wells far below
ground, the Utopia Hotel’s central heating, air conditioning, swimming pool and hot water are
all run off-grid. The external lighting is LED, every window is triple-glazed and its kitchen has
a state-of-the-art waste treatment system that actually produces energy, rather than being
powered by the grid.
Village De Ways © OPT-JL Flemal
Sustainability has been the buzz-word at the five-star Crowne Plaza Liège
(www.crowneplazaliege.be) ever since it opened for business. All its cooking, heating and
hot water is powered by gas rather than electricity or solid fuels, and much of the water it
uses is collected, filtered, pumped and recycled without drawing on the national supply.
The Martin’s Hotel group (www.martins-hotels.com), which owns the Manoir du Lac and other
properties in Brussels and the Waterloo area, is leading the way in re-balancing its carbon
footprint with a sustainable development programme launched two years ago. Accepting that
some CO2 emissions are inevitable in a large hotel, Martin’s properties off-set their carbon
deficit by funding projects setting up clean energy production in developing countries. For
example, the Martin’s group funds a green waste collection programme as well as a biogas
production plant in Tanzania. Guests are encouraged to do their bit too, collecting ‘eco
vouchers’ as a reward for minimising their carbon footprint during their stay. Re-using their
bath towels earns them 10 vouchers; choosing locally sourced and seasonal products in the
restaurant is worth another five, and so on. The vouchers can be exchanged for gifts in any
of Martin’s hotel shops.
Youth Hostels
The youth hostels in Mons, Namur and Malmédy have been awarded the international
Green Key label for their environmentally friendly initiatives, and their counterparts in Liège,
Bouillon, Tournai and the Ardennes town of Champlon are expected to gain similar recognition
early in 2013. (www.laj.be)
Eco Lodge Arti’sane @ Evrehailles near Dinant © OPT-J.P Remy
Eco-Lodges
Many of Wallonia’s gîtes and guesthouses have joined the sustainable tourism crusade, doing
what we can to minimise their environmental impact. A number of ‘eco-lodges’ have recently
appeared on the scene, built with natural materials to harmonise with their surroundings, and
designed to save energy, water and reduce waste. More information, and a list of properties
belonging to the ‘Discover Nature’ initiative, is available from the Wallonian Gîtes Association
(www.gitesdewallonie.be)
I N
W A L L O N I A
Malmedy Youth Hostel © Lebrun-laj
Liège Crowne Plaza © Jeanmart - belgiumtheplaceto.be
G R E E N
G R E E N
A T T R A C T I O N S
Possibly the most surprising sustainable attractions
in Brussels are two farms, both situated well within the
city limits and both containing working animals. Nos
Pilifs farm (www.fermenospilifs.be), which provides
employment for people with disabilities, grows a range
of organic vegetables which it sells in its eco-friendly
grocery store, while the ‘educational’ farm in Parc
Maximilien (www.lafermeduparcmaximilien.be) has a
vegetable garden, an orchard, lagoons for waste water,
a composting site and solar panels – all intended to
show visitors how the natural and urban worlds can
be brought together in a sustainable way.
Energy House
A short distance from the European Parliament
complex, the Renewable Energy House
(www.rehbrussels.eu) occupies three 19th century town
houses which have been imaginatively renovated in line
with the principles of sustainability and energy-saving.
Through a combination of solar power, biomass and
geothermal energy, the heating, ventilation and
electricity is 100% renewable – which isn’t altogether
surprising because the 100 people who work there
belong to various associations connected with the
European renewable energy sector. More than 15,000
visitors come every year to see how modern
applications can transform an old building, and point
the way to a sustainable future.
Cinderella © La Ferme du Parc Maximilien
Urban Farms
Two years ago, Brussels joined the international
Greeters network, which offers visitors a new, more
relaxed form of guided tour. Greeters (www.greeters.be)
are volunteers who accompany groups of up to six
people for 2-4 hours, either by public transport,
walking or cycling. The routes they take steer clear of
museums and exhibitions, exploring less familiar parts
of the city where there’s often a colourful story to tell.
One visitor to the capital described the experience: “My
greeter had an open mind and an interesting view of
Brussels. What I liked most was the diversity of the
districts, the kindness of the people, the amount of
cafés, bars and restaurants where you can sit down and
relax a little. It’s a wonderful counterpart to the classic
visits to the official tourist sites.” In Wallonia, the
Greeters service operates in Namur, Mons, Charleroi
and Thudinies, and will be coming to Verviers soon.
© Renewable Energy House
Greeters – guides with
a difference
Tourism for Everyone
Greeters in Brussels © Veronique Evrard
For visitors with impaired mobility, who make up
nearly a third of the adult population, getting to grips
with an unfamiliar city can be a frustrating experience.
Brussels has launched a pilot project – Tourisme Pour
Tous (www.bruxellespourtous.be) – to provide vital
information on hotels, accommodation, restaurants,
shopping centres, sport and recreation that is suitable
for those who need assistance in moving around, or
people with hearing impairments. In time, it’s hoped
to expand the scheme to include partially-sighted
visitors or people with learning difficulties.
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B R U S S E L S
G R E E N
A T T R A C T I O N S
Greening the Lake District
The attractive chain of lakes between Philippeville and Walcourt in the Namur region
is one of southern Wallonia’s gems. A diverse landscape teems with unusual flora and
fauna; the open countryside, woods, lakes and ponds are ideal for recreational
ramblers and serious hikers alike. Around the Eau d’heure lakes themselves, there are
an incredible 225 miles of well-marked paths and several challenging mountain-bike
circuits. Chiming in with this idyllic environment, Golden Lakes village
(www.goldenlakesvillage.be) is a cluster of energy-efficient wooden chalets linked
by attractive lakeside paths.
Also in the Lake District, Confluences (www.confluences.be) is one of many gîtes and
guesthouses in Wallonia actively promoting a greener way of life. This well-restored
17th century guesthouse has a ‘Discover Nature’ programme for visitors, featuring
tours of their organic garden and workshops on such diverse subjects as wild
mushrooms and bread-making. Solar panels provide power to the house itself;
rainwater is collected and recycled, and all food served to guests is home-grown or
locally sourced.
A more recent arrival at the lakes is the Spin Cablepark (www.thespin.be) on Lac
de Féronval, a nautical tele-skiing centre where thrill-seekers can try out a variety
of hair-raising watersports as they hurtle across the water suspended from a cable.
The speed comes from a battery-powered machine that zips along a wire above their
heads. From an environmental point of view, the beauty of the Spin is that it’s the first
tele-skiing centre in the world to be 100% solar-powered. Traditional waterskiing
(using speedboats) is both noisy and heavy on fuel; the Spin is clean, green and
relatively quiet – and in less than two years it’s become one of the major adventure
sport centres in Wallonia. Next year, they’re anticipating up to 30,000 visitors.
Deep In The Hill Country
W A L L O N I A
At Dochamps, an exquisite spot in the Ardennes, Parc Chlorophyll
(www.parcchlorophylle.com) offers a typically Wallonian blend of recreation,
adventure, education and art. Named after the pigment that enables plants to take
nourishment from sunlight, it’s an exciting nature trail through the forest, with a
spectacular walkway up in the tree canopy and a magnificent tree house for children
of all ages. The trail is dotted with bizarre sculptures and other artworks, and Englishspeaking nature guides are available, if arranged in advance, to point out the sensitive
and endangered plants that flourish in the most unlikely places.
In the south-western province of Luxembourg (not to be confused with the country
of the same name just over the border) the Green Key-accredited A Yaaz Farm
(www.balade-en-foret.be) is a unique tourist attraction aimed at bringing children and
families into close contact with nature. Surrounded by fields on the edge of the vast
Anlier forest, the owner has built a cluster of environmentally-friendly lodges, added
a transparent biosphere and Red Indian-style tepee, and encourages guests to carry
out typical farm tasks, such as shoeing the horses and trimming their hooves, as well
as riding out on attractive circuits through the forest. The biosphere can be moved and
inflated in any part of the estate, giving an unrestricted view of the sky and firing the
imagination of visiting children.
Green ‘Paradise’ on Earth
A few miles from Mons you enter Paradise. Well, perhaps that’s stretching it a bit
but there’s a stunning attraction with a similar name: Pairi Daiza (www.pairidaiza.eu).
It occupies 125,000 acres of rolling parkland that used to be the grounds of a
Cistercian abbey. Now the landscape is being spectacularly transformed into a
microcosm of the natural world, and the owners have filled it with exotic animals,
birds, amphibians and plants from all four corners.
But it’s more than a zoo or safari park, because it also features reconstructions
of south-east Asian temples, Chinese gardens, and in time will include stretches
of jungle, rainforest and savannah. All this, plus a tropical hothouse, aquarium and
Europe’s largest aviary, has been created with the intention of raising the awareness
of visitors (it’s Wallonia’s second most popular tourist attraction) of the fragility of the
planet and the importance of achieving harmony between man and nature. Apart from
providing lavish entertainment, Pairi Daiza is actively involved in the conservation of
certain endangered species. A number of breeding programmes are underway, and
in time it’s hoped to release some vulnerable animals back into the wild.
Spin Cable © Eau d’heure Lakes
Flamingos at Para DDaisa © OPT-AlexKouprianoff
© Parc Chlorophyll
© A Yaaz FTLB - P.Willems
In a forest near Dinant, at the gateway to the Ardennes, the large adventure park
Domaine Provincial de Chevetogne (www.domainedechevetogne.be) is a warren of
attractive walks and amusements amongst trees and gardens. There’s an animal farm,
where children can feed deer and wild boars; rides and swimming pools which would
normally be a heavy drain on energy resources. But Chevetogne is so heavily geared
towards sustainable energy that its array of solar panels and wind turbines produces
half the power it needs. In fact, its owners claim it is 30 years in advance of the Kyoto
agreement, when the world’s developed countries committed themselves to reducing
emissions of greenhouse gases.
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F O O D
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B R U S S E L S
The people of Brussels are renowned for their love
of food and their gastronomic talents: a national
obsession that’s been celebrated throughout 2012 in
the ‘Brusselicious’ festival, a series of mouth-watering
public events and demonstrations showcasing the best
chefs, restaurants and local dishes in Belgium.
‘Brusselicious’ was such a success that it’s returning
to the capital next year. Organic food plays a central
role in many of its events, inspired by the international
‘Slow Food’ movement that sprung up in Italy in the
1980s as a protest against the relentless advance of
multi-national fast food chains, which have lowered
the quality of western diets and forced countless
local producers out of business.
Many restaurants (and households) make use of an
innovative set-up called efarmz (www.efarmz.be) for
their weekly food supplies. Founded by two food-loving
entrepreneurs keen to support local producers and
small farms in a country where most of the farming is
now done on an industrial scale, efarmz is an online
store, like Amazon or Ebay, but all its wares are fresh,
seasonal and come from small producers. The virtual
shop-window is impressive: fruit and veg, dairy
products, bread, biscuits and flour; jams and jellies;
beer, fruit and vegetable juices; organic meat, baskets
of cheese and ready-made products such as chocolate
cakes and tarts. All the packing is returnable and
recycled, and there are two delivery days every week.
The Slow Food message has spread to Brussels and
several Wallonian towns, including Namur and Liège
celebrating culinary traditions and foods that were in
danger of being lost; resisting the growth of
agribusiness, factory farms, genetic engineering and
over-use of pesticides, and ensuring that timeless
methods of harvesting and food preparation survive
into the future. Eighty per cent of organic products
used in Belgian restaurants are grown in Wallonia,
greatly reducing the amount of energy needed to
move food from farm to table. As the Slow Food
founders remind us, it’s impossible to ignore the
strong connection between the plate and the planet.
Organic food does not have to be ‘slow’: fast food
can be sustainable too. The spectacular success of the
trendy Belgian chain Exki (www.exki.com) proves it.
From humble beginnings in Brussels 13 years ago,
Exki now has 30 outlets in Belgium and has spread
to France, Italy, Luxembourg and Holland. Its slogan
is “where the quiche eclipses the burger”, and a clue
to what it’s about can be found at its new outlet in
Place de la Bourse, where one table has three bikes
instead of seats, on which you can pedal away to
charge up your phone, laptop or tablet. The Exki menu
is loaded with fresh, organic and locally-produced food,
such as salads and home-made vegetable pies, soups
and sandwiches. Customers can calculate their carbon
footprint when making their choice, and women
customers out-number men by seven to three, turning
their backs on the ‘burger and chips’ mentality that
the company blames on the male of the species.
In early summer, Wallonia puts on a ‘bio week’
(www.semainebio.org) aimed at promoting the merits
of organic food. Next year’s festival takes place from
4th to 13th June, and includes 170 activities such as
conferences, tasting sessions, store promotions and
farm tours.
The Belgian Tourist Office lists a range of Wallonian
‘gourmet breaks’ on offer, where you can visit
producers’ workplaces and farms to learn, for example,
how snails are prepared in Namur, or how Ardennes
honey and ham are made. There are numerous tours
of traditional breweries and distilleries, and a handful
of food-related museums in the province paying
homage to the traditional way of eating that’s steadily
returning to fashion. A useful site – www.bioforum.be –
enables visitors in search of organic foodshops to track
them down with a search tool that lists every one and
cross-references them according to their particular
speciality: bread, fruit, diary or meat.
Food markets are a feature of Brussels, and two of the
finest specialise in organic and seasonal produce: Place
St Catherine market (Wednesday mornings) and Atelier
des Tanneurs market (Wednesdays, Fridays and
weekends.)
Organic Wallonia
The extent to which Wallonia has switched to organic
farming is highlighted by the official figures: 84% of
farming land is dedicated to organic production.
Patisserie carrementbon.be in Namur © OPT - Emmanuel Mathez
The capital is full of high quality, organic restaurants
and other food outlets such as bakeries, grocery stores
and stalls in the open markets. These are no longer the
preserve of the sandal-wearing, hippy types who
pioneered organic food in the 1970s. The trend is
spreading to some of the most upmarket venues in the
capital. In September 2012, more than 100 restaurant
and hotel chefs took part in a week-long festival
promoting Slow Food values and methods. One of the
best-known chefs, Christian Tirilly, has devised a totally
Belgian menu at the Sheraton Brussels Hotel
(www.sheratonbrussels) in the business district,
which as two écodynamique stars.
W A L L O N I A
Cheztantealice.be © OPT - JP Remy
Organic Brussels
&
© OPT - JP Remy
O R G A N I C
Belgian Tourist Office · Brussels & Wallonia · 217 Marsh Wall · London E14 9FJ · Tel. Trade: 020 7531 0391 · e-mail: trade@belgiumtheplaceto.be