The Slow Food movement is a bit of a mystery in Ireland, sometimes even to the people involved in it. Its not organic and its not fairtrade – although they are certainly encouraged. So having eliminated the things it is not what is left?
My second visit to the Slow Food Terra Madre event in Turin (held bi-annually every October) helped me finally reach a better understanding.
It is people, not food, that define the purpose of Slow Food. The 4 days of the event allowed us as delegates from our countries to talk to producers and other Slow Food members who actively run projects in their countries and to participate in workshops discussing issues that are common to every country in the network.
During those 4 days I was privileged to come across
- Communities in Ebola torn Sierra Leone who now more than ever, rely on the food from their shared gardens.
- Fishermen and women in seaside towns and villages in South Africa whose rights to small scale fishing were restored through a change in a new law.
- Families in Palestine devasted by bombings (a Slow Food activist and his entire family died in a single blast during that war) who appreciate the ongoing support they receive as they rebuild their lives through markets, trading and gardens.
- Raw cheese producers in Ireland whose ability to earn a living will be ended if new moves to police their activities are successful.
So for me Slow Food is not about the food you enjoy or the ingredients that go into it. It is about the person who grows or harvests, the person who prepares, the person who produces. It is focused on their lives, their ability to earn a living, to support a family, to enjoy their work. That is what matters.
Food produced on large mono-cultural farms, processed in factories by machines and traded in scale as a commodity on global markets cannot deliver those basics.
Slow Food supports good, clean and fair food. For people.
You can find out more about Slow Food at www.slowfoodireland.com
Keith Bohanna believes in small scale food production and helps run Slow Food South East. He was one of 25 representatives of Slow Food Ireland at Terra Madre 2014. He shares his thoughts at www.biabeag.com
Photos from Slow Food International of the event here:
https://www.facebook.com/slowfoodinternational/photos_stream
Keith's Time Lapse of the Irish Raw Cheese Stand https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuxrHJWE3fY
