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AUGUST 26, 2004
SLOW FOOD LAUNCHES TERRA MADRE:
A WORLD MEETING OF FOOD COMMUNITIES
An alternative to the current industrial
food production system exists: one where food quality and
variety are valued, rural regions thrive, and links between
producers and consumers are strong.
From October 20-23, 2004, Slow Food will convene Terra Madre,
a world meeting of food communities, in Turin, Italy. Terra
Madre will be a forum for those who seek to grow, raise, catch,
create, distribute and promote food in ways that respect the
environment, defend human dignity and protect the health of
consumers.
Terra Madre will be a gathering of an unprecedented scale,
drawing 5,000 people from120 nations. Participants will represent
'"Food Communities", which means they are part of
a chain of production, linked by a common product, ethnic
identity, region, history, or approach. Over 450 American
and 110 Canadian delegates will attend Terra Madre, including
fruit growers, ranchers, honey producers, winemakers, vegetable
farmers, artisanal cheesemakers, bread bakers, brewers, chefs
and more.
"That Terra Madre is being organized with a strong focus
on cultural issues-both at a basic level where traditional
knowledge connected to food products is presented and at a
'higher' level where the valuable cultural diversity of different
food-producing communities is evident-is something new,"
said Vandana Shiva, activist, ecologist, physicist and founder
of Navdanya, a movement for biodiversity conservation and
farmers' rights in India.
"It is being created from the bottom up rather than
being imposed from the top down: that too is fighting the
current trend and lack of worldwide awareness. It will stimulate
people close to the movement to reflect on issues. While a
political approach unfortunately always generates divisions,
a cultural approach is a way of bringing people together."
At Terra Madre, Slow Food hopes to foster connections between
individuals and communities working in sustainable agriculture
from around the world-to provide a meeting place for a California
apricot grower to speak with a Peruvian orchardist, for Italian
and Spanish coastal fishermen to share ideas, and for Canadian
and Ethiopian wheat growers to share meals, discussions, and
friendships. From a family-run wild Alaskan sockeye salmon
fishery to a potato farmer in central Maine, small US producers
will have the opportunity to share information and discuss
the challenges that are redefining American agriculture and
our food supply. "The goals of Terra Madre are unique
in the world of agriculture and food production: to put small
farmers and food producers on center stage, and to reveal
the global face of sustainable agriculture as a vibrant, creative
and hopeful movement," said Erika Lesser, Executive Director
of Slow Food USA. Over four days, delegates will participate
in over a hundred Earth Workshops and Delegate Meetings structured
around the central themes of sustainability, biodiversity,
community and commerce. These meetings will give producers
the opportunity to explore important issues and share solutions
to the challenges of producing food through sustainable methods.
Some meeting topics will include:
- Lessons from Native Agricultural Systems
- Organic Certification: A Guarantee to Consumers, a Burden
for Producers
- What World Without Seeds?
- Rare Meat Breeds
- Small-Scale Fishing: Protection for the Environment and
Market Strategies
- Sustainable Chicken Farming
- Reinforcing Local Markets: Shortening the Chain that
Connects Producer to Consumer
- Fair Trade Products, Their Quality and Distribution
- It All Begins in the Kitchen: Restaurateurs in the Food
Production Chain
- A School for Life, A School for Farming
- Rural Communication
Slow Food convivia across the country are organizing fundraisers
and other launch events to honor their local delegates and
generate momentum for this unprecedented event. Some pre-events
include:
- August 29: Taste of Slow Food at Orfila Vineyards, presented
by SF San Diego, CA
- August 29: Provence Meets New Mexico, hosted by SF Santa
Fe, NM
- September 12: SF Pittsburgh's American Heritage Festival,
Pittsburgh, PA
- September 12: A Big Pig Roast hosted by SF Asheville,
NC
- October 16: A Texas Harvest organized by SF Dallas, TX
To learn more about these pre-events and view the complete
US delegation list, please click
here.
For general information on Terra Madre, visit: www.terramadre2004.org
To apply for press credentials to attend Terra Madre or any
pre-events, or to receive future press releases via email,
please contact Erika Lesser at: erika@slowfoodusa.org. |
