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2023 Annual Report

Dear Slow Food activists,

I watched our movement flourish throughout 2023 as a member of the Slow Food USA board of directors. The enthusiastic return to in-person gatherings, launch of our book focused on the Ark of Taste, dynamic and connection-building Slow Fish events series, and so much more made me proud to be part of this movement toward good, clean and fair food for all. Growth was another throughline for the previous year: We increased the number of members who pledged to support Slow Food, and we grew our incredible network by supporting three new chapters.

Ultimately, it is the work of our passionate and talented community of volunteer-led chapters that fuels our movement and inspires a more resilient food future, along with our many financial supporters. Many thanks to you all for nourishing connections among each other so that we can, together, connect and nurture our foodways.

In solidarity,

Bilal Sarwari, interim executive director

support our work

Community events

Slow Food USA and many chapters across the country reinvested their time and efforts to create in-person educational and community-gathering events.

Slow Food Prescott

Slow Food Prescott partnered with two local indigenous tribes: Yavapai Prescott Indian Tribe and the Yavapai Apache Tribe to share celebrations, mentor gardens, and support training.

Slow Food russian river

Through the Save the Gravenstein Community initiative, Slow Food Russian River sponsored the country’s only free community apple press and participated in the annual Gravenstein Apple Fair, attended by 14,500 people, where they pressed and handed out over 6,000 free samples of freshly pressed juice. They also increased their connections with apple cider makers and distillers.

Slow Food VEGAS

Slow Food Vegas volunteers with Nevada Plants at fruit tree planting events in low socioeconomic communities. In 2023, Slow Food Vegas volunteered at Cambiero Elementary School, a Title 1 school where 100% of students receive free and reduced lunch, to plant fruit trees that would provide fresh fruit for students and their families.

Slow Food denver

In partnership with gardens and farms, Slow Food Denver held weekly volunteer mornings in the summer where participants supported by planting, weeding, harvesting, and more while learning skills to apply at home. Volunteers learned steps for growing their own food while contributing to an equitable food system in Denver. They were able to donate over 749 pounds of produce to local communities facing food insecurity.

Slow Food sonoma county north

Slow Food Sonoma County North has participated in the Snail of Approval program since 2017. They have built a robust Snail community of 48 food-related businesses. Each year, they hold an awards ceremony to introduce their newest Snail awardees to the community and the media, with an average attendance of over 100 people. Through this event, they educated and inspired people to learn more about the food they eat and directed them to food businesses that promote good, clean, and fair food in Sonoma County.

ark of taste midwest

Ark of Taste in the Midwest hosted 50 people in Ashkum, IL to experience Turkey Red wheat, a Slow Food Ark of Taste success story. Passionate chefs, farmers, and Ark of Taste advocates presented insights and uses for this particular wheat variety. 

Slow Food Negroni Week Fund

The St. Louis chapter’s Negroni Week Fund supports disadvantaged farmers interested in starting a farm on small plots. Slow Food St. Louis uses the USDA’s definition of disadvantaged, which are groups that are subject to racial or ethnic prejudice and can include women.

This program, nurtured by Slow Food St. Louis board members Mary Keeter and René Sackett, helped Erin Renee become more connected to farming, especially in connection to entrepreneurship and biodiversity. This was one of several initiatives funded by funds raised during the 2022 Negroni Week, which inspired thousands of bars and restaurants to donate to Slow Food.

educational initiatives

Learning and teaching are core to advancing the Slow Food movement. Chapters, community action teams and the national office offered in-person and virtual opportunities to connect and enhance knowledge about good, clean and fair food.

Slow Food santa fe

Slow Food Santa Fe’s farm tours offered opportunities to educate people about food and farming. This year, they visited the Tesuque Pueblo Farm and seed bank, where visitors learned about the importance of seed saving and traditional pueblo farming practices.

Slow Food east end

Slow Food East End’s Slow Hours engaged people through introductions and deep discussions about impactful ways to help others, such as Food Rescue and composting events. They also organized an Earth Day gathering to raise eco-awareness and highlight local solutions. Additionally, East End’s Slow F.I.S.H. event promoted local aquaculture initiatives.

Slow Food case western university

Slow Food Case Western University hosted author Sarah Lohman, a cultural historian, who presented her new book highlighting endangered American foods, produce, and livestock. During the event, members enjoyed lunch while discussing her historical research and ways to support community food organizations, growers, and producers to preserve local foods and culinary traditions. The university group collaborated with Slow Food Cleveland for this event, enhancing the impact and outreach of their efforts.

Slow fish

Director of Programs Mara Welton teamed up with Slow Fish North America’s Network Coordinator Colles Stowell to develop ten in-person Slow Fish programs at six different locations throughout 2023. 

Slow Food boulder

Slow Food Boulder educated, inspired, and mobilized people within Boulder County through their first event of the year, the Seed Exchange at Masa Seed Foundation. They offered community members free seeds and advice on starting their gardens. Slow Food Boulder also invited a beekeeper to speak about the importance of pollinators and included farm tours, free pizza made with local grains, and seed art for children.

The ark of taste book

Slow Food USA released The Ark of Taste book in 2023 through publisher Voracious and agent Indelible Editions. This hardcover tome by authors David S. Shields and Giselle Kennedy Lord, with vivid illustrations by Claudia Pearson, features the stories of how some of these American Ark of Taste foods almost didn’t reach our table, with recipes from Slow Food chefs and profiles of growers from around the country.

Since the launch of The Ark of Taste in August 2023, the book has appeared on shelves at booksellers throughout the US, received a James Beard Foundation Award nomination, and been added to must-read lists from Smithsonian Magazine, Food Tank and Vice. We explored the book with acclaimed food activist Marion Nestle in a December Slow Food Live event, and chapters and booksellers across the country have hosted our brilliant authors for readings and discussions.

Food Policy
and Advocacy

Systems change is our only path toward achieving meaningful advancement of our Slow Food mission. Chapters and the Food and Farm Policy team devised opportunities to take action for food justice.

food and farm policy team

Thanks to a grant to support Farm Bill work, a community organizer presented Farm Bill 101 presentations and listening sessions with four chapters and 65 total attendees. 

409 Slow Food USA activists engaged in calls to action to support the end of the destructive EATS Act, increase funding for WIC, and endorse the SLPA and FACF bills.

slow food chicago

Slow Food Chicago was proud to spread educational efforts through the Common Ground Film Screening. The film screening was the first of partnerships leading to a sold out screening in November at the Music Box Theatre. 

Slow food baltimore

Slow Food Baltimore brought attention to the devastation of the Earthquake in Morocco. They shared Moroccan cultural food traditions and dishes and donated $2,000.00 to World Central Kitchen for food relief in Gaza. The chapter supported local immigrant businesses by serving their food at this fundraising event.

Sustainability and Climate Justice

Our beautiful planet is aching from the impacts of pollution, climate change, monocropping, deforestation and myriad other harmful practices that threaten the future of Earth. The global SLow Food movement works to reverse the impact. of the human-powered climate crisis through food.

slow food lake tahoe

Slow Food Lake Tahoe continues to poll the recipients of their donated food to determine which culturally relevant herbs and vegetables to grow in their garden and donate to those in need. Slow Food Lake Tahoe’s Grow Your Own edible gardening program offers multiple varieties of plant starts specifically chosen as plants that grow well in their high elevations.

slow food upper columbia

Slow Food Upper Columbia’s ongoing pollinator project nurtures the wild pollinators, plants that create habitat and food for native pollinators.

slow food cincinnati

Slow Food Cincinnati made Plant a Seed kits available to all those interested in growing their own food, including school garden programs nationwide. Each seed packet included growing guidance and stories suitable for teaching at any age level. The majority of the seeds were Ark of Taste crops, and planting them in community spaces contributed to building food sovereignty.

Slow food dc

Slow Food DC engaged with Mutual Aid groups, farmers markets, and community gardens around the city as part of the Share a Seed program. These efforts helped collect extra seeds and garden supplies, which were redistributed at events and through Little Free Seed Libraries around the city. At the end of 2023, they received a $7,500 grant from Papa John’s to support their food security efforts through Share a Seed.

by the numbers

Our stories are powerful, and our results back them up. Here are glimpses into our quantifiable successes in 2023.

members

active chapters

new chapters in 2023

chapter leaders

volunteers

in-person events

event attendees

partnerships

advocacy actions taken

seed kits donated to schools

people impacted by programs

chapter revenue

financial updates from 2023

Slow Food USA is proud to share its 2023 Form 990 report with its community of donors and activists.

I believe in Slow Food's mission and its ability to strengthen any community that celebrates the good food movement. I have met the most incredible people through Slow Food Atlanta — I love my city even more.

 

— Marian Dickson, chapter leader, Slow Food Atlanta