Slow Food Europe Events during the European Week of Regions and Cities

Slow Food Europe will take part in the European Week of Regions and Cities, which will take place in Brussels, Belgium. On October 9, a dialogue-oriented, transnational workshop will be organized to present experiences and policy recommendations of a three-year-long project “SlowFood-CE: Culture, Heritage, Identity and Food”, while in the evening various stakeholders will be invited to a roundtable discussion to talk about short food supply chains.

Experiences of the Slow Food – Central Europe Project

In September 2017, Slow Food launched the project, which included five European cities – Venice (Italy), Dubrovnik (Croatia), Brno (Czech Republic), Kecskemét (Hungary), and Krakow (Poland). These cities identified their gastronomic products – from salt in Dubrovnik, obtained from the oldest and best-preserved European salt pan, to a small grey crustacean usually fried and served with soft white polenta in Venice. Through various educational, culinary and tasting activities, organized for citizens, school children and tourists, these cities are aiming to protect and represent their local gastronomic heritage.

On October 9, European, national, regional, and local government officials, citizens and visitors of Brussels will be invited to a workshop which will focus on the governance structures needed to support sustainable food systems, the city and its role in creating value around gastronomic heritage and, food, its relationship with tradition and local identities and landscapes.

The workshop will be led by five speakers: Piercarlo Grimaldi, UNISG academic and cultural anthropologist, Maciej Hofman, Policy Officer at the European Commission (Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture), Ursula Hudson, president of Slow Food Germany, Ivo Kara-Pešić, leader of Kinookus Association, and Isabella Marangoni, officer in charge of the European Policies Department of the City of Venice.

To register to the “Slow Food – Central Europe: Culture, Heritage, Identity and Food” event, please click here. Registration closes on September 27.

The project is financed by Interreg CENTRAL EUROPE. 

Roundtable Discussion on Food Supply Chains

On the evening of October 9, Slow Food Europe will gather more than 15 stakeholders working on food supply chains around a table to discuss if cities and regions have all the tools necessary to develop short food supply chains. The discussion will center around the gaps, challenges, and barriers to the implementation of short supply chains in Europe, as well as positive examples and opportunities, to be inspired from. This is a topic at the heart of Slow Food’s work, by encouraging consumers to eat locally produced food and supporting farmers in gaining access to local markets.

Representatives from the European Commission, the European Economic and Social Committee, local authorities, retailers, food producers, and civil society will participate in the discussion. The event will be hosted by Slow Food Chef Alliance restaurant “Les Filles“.

Due to limited space, the roundtable discussion will be closed to the public. 

Indre Anskaityte, Slow Food Europe