If you’ve ever looked at the ground in your local park and wondered what it would taste like, we’ve found just the museum for you. None other than the Museum of Edible Earth is arriving in London this March, dropping down at Somerset House for a month of munching on dirt. And yes, this museum is interactive – you’re able and welcome to chow down on the titular edible earth. (But you do so at your own risk…)
Founded by dr. masharu, an earth eater and earth lover, the Museum of Edible Earth explores “‘geophagy‘ – the practice of eating earth for health, and customary, or culinary benefit.” Visitors can explore the history of eating earth, and even try some for themselves (only if they want to!) during the museum’s stay from March 18 – April 26.
The Museum of Edible Earth
This is the Museum of Edible Earth’s first display in the UK. It was originally founded back in 2017 in Amsterdam and has since toured the world. Its impressive collection of over 600 edible samples, such as clay, chalk, and volcanic rock, has gone on display in over 44 countries.
Now, when I said you could eat some of the museum’s samples, I was being 100% serious. In fact, they’re very much inviting you to try it out. “At the centre of the exhibition will be a communal tasting table where guided tasting sessions will take place throughout the run.” Each sample is accompanied by tasting notes and the cultural history of the consumption of that sample. Guests are also invited to leave their own tasting notes and impressions.
It’s worth noting that “consuming earth is not advised by health professionals. Earth tasting is at the participants’ own risk.”
But still, how’s that for a unique meal culinary eating experience?
An eco-conscious exhibition
The Museum of Edible Earth is far more than just a curiosity. It’s also striving to change how museums create their exhibitions. In building the show, Somerset House is the first arts organisation to compost a previous exhibition build and repurpose it for a new exhibition.
To do this, Somerset House has taken the hempcrete blocks, which made up the walls of the 2025 SOIL exhibition, and combined them with coffee grounds from its onsite cafes to create compost. This compost has, in turn, been used to create ink, which is being used to screenprint the exhibition title within the gallery space.
Okay, but what does that all mean? At its simplest, it’s the ultimate example of recycling and sustainability. Somerset House has taken a previous exhibition’s materials and reused them to create a new exhibition. It’s the result of an impressive collaboration between the museum, masharu, The Land Gardeners (co-curators of SOIL), and Jealous Gallery & Print Studio.
Said masharu:
‘Somerset House is the perfect venue to host the Museum of Edible Earth, with a track-record in exploring soil and its commitment to sustainability. I hope the UK audience takes an open-minded approach to earth tasting and audiences find the experience as culturally fascinating as the rest of the world has.’
🎟️ Entry to the museum is available on a pay-what-you-can basis to keep it accessible to everyone.
📍 The Museum of Edible Earth, Somerset House, Strand, WC2R 1LA. The nearest station is Temple.
You can find out more about the Museum of Edible Earth and explore its collection online, here.