By Michelle DiMuzio, Communications Coordinator
The 2021 Slow Food USA Annual Report is now available on our website and is filled with stories of resilience from more than 22 chapters. Over the next few months, we will be highlighting stories from the Annual Report, demonstrating chapters fulfilling our mission of good, clean and fair food for all.
In October 2021, Slow Food Denver co-hosted their first annual seed-saving event at Ekar Farm, an organization that serves as a “focal point for Denver’s Jewish community to come together around issues of food security, environmentalism, and urban farming,” and Spirit of the Sun, an “indigenous womxn-led nonprofit working to empower Native communities, one youth at a time.”
Maya Brook, Executive Director of Slow Food Denver, discussed the importance of the event. “Attendees learned about Ekar Farm and their seed saving initiatives, and Shannon Francis from Spirit of the Sun discussed the importance of seed saving as well as the current struggles seeds face.” Shannon also shared seeds she inherited from her great-grandfather, highlighting the value of saving seeds not only from a cultural perspective but also for preserving biodiversity. “There was really an awareness of what is lost and continues to be lost with seeds and how important it is to have biodiversity and move away from a monocrop society,” Maya shared.
As attendees heard seed stories and seed preservation techniques, they participated in helping the farm harvest, weigh and label seeds. Everyone was also able to take home a bag of seeds, featuring unique local seeds, helping to promote biodiversity.
Maya and the Slow Food Denver team are excited to continue this partnership with future seed-saving events and spread hope for biodiversity. “This event focuses on the fair aspect of Slow Food and involves communities we are not always a part of day to day; it expands our reach into the community and allows us to learn more about the Jewish and Indigenous peoples in our local area.”
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Learn more about Slow Food Denver on their website.
Read a recap from the 2022 Slow Seed Summit from our friends at Heritage Radio Network, highlighting the importance of seed sovereignty here.
