Mexico’s Lucio Usobiaga has been named winner of the 2026 Basque Culinary World Prize (BCWP) for his work with Arca Tierra, a farming and collaboration network helping preserve Xochimilco’s chinampa agricultural system – ancient, pre-Aztec agricultural canal islands – by connecting small-scale farmers with the culinary community and building more sustainable and resilient food systems.
Today, Arca Tierra cultivates six hectares and works with around 50 farming families across Xochimilco, Puebla, Hidalgo and the State of Mexico, supplying approximately 60 restaurants and 300 active subscriptions. In 2025, nearly 16,000 people visited the chinampas through its on-site experiences.
Usobiaga has also opened the chinampas to visitors, giving thousands of people the chance to learn about this way of farming directly from the people who keep it alive.
After studying philosophy, Lucio Usobiaga left academia to learn alongside the chinampa farmers. He came to understand that preserving this ancestral knowledge meant connecting it with new economic opportunities and other fields of expertise.
In 2011, he co-founded Yolcan to build bridges between chinampa agriculture, new markets and gastronomy. This work evolved into Arca Tierra in 2020, a network combining agroecological production and distribution, restoration, training and hospitality, built on a simple principle: the chinampas can only be preserved if farming remains viable and the people who work the land can earn a living.
Through the Xochimilco Agroecological Initiative (IAX), Usobiaga also leads restoration, research and training projects that bring together farmers, scientists, chefs, and consumers. In 2024, he also opened Baldío, a restaurant developed in collaboration with British chef, Douglas McMaster.
Following the announcement, Usobiaga, who has Basque roots, said:
"I am very happy and deeply moved to receive this recognition in the 11th edition of BCWP. Through this prize, the Basque Culinary Center and the Basque Government have opened new paths and championed social gastronomy. At Arca Tierra, in Xochimilco, we share the same vision: We believe in building bridges between small-scale farmers and the culinary community, understanding that gastronomy is fundamentally rooted in the land.
"Farmers care for our water, air and soil, while providing us with delicious, nutritious food. They are guardians of the land and, in a sense, custodians of the planet's spiritual wealth."
"I receive this prize with enormous gratitude and the conviction that it opens up new possibilities for us to continue building together."
The BCWP is a unique global prize that recognises individuals whose work demonstrates how gastronomy can be a driving force for change. Established in 2016 by the Basque Government and Basque Culinary Center, the prize carries an award of €100,000, which must be allocated to a project chosen by the winner. It has provided an international platform for committed professionals whose work extends beyond the kitchen to make a positive impact on society.
In its 11th edition, the Basque Culinary World Prize continues to celebrate the transformative power of gastronomy. This year, the prize has broadened its scope beyond the work of chefs, to recognise professionals from a wide range of disciplines who use their knowledge, talent and creativity to bring about significant social change, often through interdisciplinary approaches.
Against this backdrop, the Basque Culinary World Prize today announced a winner, a special mention and the BCWP Cooking Legacy, an honorary distinction created by the jury. Together, these recognitions reflect the prize's continued commitment to highlighting inspiring stories that demonstrate gastronomy's challenging yet contagious potential for change.
In 2025, the prize highlighted gastronomy's role in social integration in the United States through the work of Leticia Landa at La Cocina, a project providing training, incubation and support to talented individuals seeking to establish careers in San Francisco's restaurant industry.
In 2026, the Basque Culinary World Prize continues to champion gastronomy's transformative potential through the work of Lucio Usobiaga. His achievement lies in connecting agriculture, gastronomy, knowledge, economics, and community to help keep Xochimilco alive. His work creates new opportunities for farmers while bringing consumers and culinary professionals closer to the cultural, environmental, and social value behind the food they eat.
Alongside Lucio Usobiaga, the jury has recognised Edson Leite and Adélia Rodrigues with a special mention, and Jacques Pépin with the BCWP Cooking Legacy.
The latter is an honorary award created by the jury for professionals whose sustained, dedicated work keeps everyday cooking alive, making culinary knowledge accessible to all so that anyone can feed themselves and enjoy the craft. After 11 years of the BCWP, this distinction was created to recognise the transformative power that lies in the very act of cooking for ourselves.
Each year, through its winner and special mentions, the Basque Culinary World Prize seeks to convey a broader message about the different ways culinary professionals can contribute to society. This edition highlights gastronomy's capacity to influence the development, wellbeing and transformation of communities and the places they call home.
Lucio Usobiaga was selected as the winner by a jury comprising some of the world's most influential chefs, representing the International Committee of Basque Culinary Center. Chaired by chef Joan Roca (Spain, El Celler de Can Roca), the jury also included Manu Buffara (Brazil), Michel Bras (France), Trine Hahnemann (Denmark), Elena Reygadas (Mexico), Josh Niland (Australia) and Narda Lepes (Argentina).
The announcement took place during Gastronomy, Identity and Transformation, an event held in Curitiba, Brazil, exploring gastronomy as a source of identity and a driver of social change, as well as its potential to address contemporary challenges and contribute to a better future through a holistic approach.
Following the selection, Joan Roca, President of the Basque Culinary World Prize Jury, said:
"Lucio Usobiaga brings us back to where our food comes from and to the people whose work makes it possible. He reminds us that a place as unique as the chinampas of Xochimilco, threatened by pollution, urbanisation and the abandonment of farmland, can only survive if the people who farm it can earn a living from their work.
"Through Arca Tierra, he has brought farmers, chefs and consumers closer together, creating a shared effort to restore the soil and canals and help more people understand why they matter.
"His work shows what can happen when people come together around a common goal, and how traditional knowledge can help us tackle some of today's biggest challenges."
Manu Buffara, jury member and one of the event's hosts, added:
"For me, it is an immense honour to welcome to Paraná people who are transforming the world through gastronomy. This gathering reminds us that cooking goes far beyond restaurants: it is culture, identity, education, inclusion and a powerful tool for social transformation.
"Choosing a winner is never easy when we encounter such extraordinary stories. Every project has its own voice, purpose and unique way of making an impact.
"As a Brazilian, I am particularly moved to see initiatives from our country recognised, especially those born in underserved communities that use gastronomy to create opportunities, restore dignity and transform lives.
"I firmly believe that the true value of gastronomy lies not only in what we serve on a plate, but in what we can change in people's lives. Gastronomy can nourish far more than the body. It can nourish dreams, open doors and transform futures."
Amaia Barredo, Minister for Food, Rural Development, Agriculture and Fisheries of the Basque Government, said:
"Beyond being a strategic sector, gastronomy is itself a powerful tool for social transformation. Supporting the creation and development of the Basque Culinary World Prize over the past eleven years reinforces our commitment to opening new paths, transforming lives, contributing to society and, ultimately, sowing the seeds of the future through initiatives with global reach.
"As part of the Euskadi Basque Country Strategy, the prize contributes to the country's international profile and confirms that Basque gastronomy, beyond its tradition and prestige, continues to be a source of innovation and leadership.
"At a time of profound change, BCWP renews the Basque Country's commitment to a fairer, more sustainable and more humane model of development, one that places food and gastronomy at the heart of wellbeing and shared progress."
Joxe Mari Aizega, Director General of Basque Culinary Center, said:
“Gastronomy needs people with courage and imagination to find new ways of tackling the challenges we face. The projects recognised by the Basque Culinary World Prize show what that can look like. This year’s recipients are part of a growing movement using food to make a difference, and one we are committed to supporting.”
Special Mention: Edson Leite and Adélia Rodrigues, Gastronomia Periférica, Brazil
Brazil's Edson Leite and Adélia Rodrigues, both present at the event, received a special mention from the Basque Culinary World Prize 2026 jury for Gastronomia Periférica, a project that provides culinary training to people from marginalised communities in São Paulo and peripheries, helping them turn their talent into employment and economic independence.
The initiative combines training opportunities, paid work placements and an employment platform, with a mission to bring the periphery into the centre of gastronomy, rather than the other way around.
Its latest venture demonstrates this ambition: a floating culinary school and restaurant designed to reach communities along the banks of the Amazon River. More than 3,000 people have participated in its programmes, enabling many to enter formal employment and opening up opportunities to start businesses of their own.
Their approach is built around a simple idea; rather than bringing gastronomy to the periphery, they want to "bring the periphery to the centre of gastronomy.”
Through their programmes, they seek to change the roles historically occupied by people from these communities within the hospitality industry, where opportunities have often been limited to cleaning or other positions offering little scope for professional advancement. Instead, they aim to help participants create "new possibilities for their own lives."
To achieve this, Gastronomia Periférica combines Adélia Rodrigues' approach to education and human development with Edson Leite's experience and technical expertise, for which he previously received a BCWP special mention for, in 2012.
Their vocational training programmes are free and tailored to the characteristics of each community and the demands of the labour market. They combine theoretical learning through a distance-learning platform with practical training in their kitchens.
BCWP Cooking Legacy: Jacques Pépin, Jacques Pépin Foundation, France–United States
The BCWP Cooking Legacy is an honorary distinction created by the jury to recognise an individual who has spent more than seven decades opening up the world of cooking to others, transforming lives by making everyday cooking more accessible and achievable.
The new distinction broadens BCWP's perspective without departing from its founding purpose. It recognises a professional whose work has helped people around the world learn to cook for themselves, an achievement that is transformative in its own right.
Through his straightforward approach, more than 30 books and hundreds of television programmes, Jacques Pépin has served as an open classroom for generations of Americans, guided by the conviction that anyone can learn to cook and that cooking can offer a path to a better life.
Through the Jacques Pépin Foundation, established in 2016 with his daughter, he supports culinary education as a route into employment for people leaving prison, disadvantaged young people, military veterans and others.
At 90, he continues to produce educational content to help people prepare their own meals.
Widely regarded as one of the great culinary educators of our time, Pépin has made teaching a defining thread throughout his career. Through more than 30 books, hundreds of television programmes and extensive teaching, he has introduced generations to cooking through an accessible, practical approach.
His work has helped transform how gastronomy is taught, understood and practiced, both professionally and at home.
His commitment to education has also extended into academia. In the early 1990s, together with Julia Child, he helped establish a pioneering master's degree programme in gastronomy at Boston University, contributing to the recognition of gastronomy as a field of knowledge and academic study.