After the visit of HM the Prince of Wales on Saturday, yesterday the Salone del Gusto 2004 was honored to receive the former president of the USSR Mikhail Gorbaciov, now a committed supporter of the World Political Forum.
Gorbachev was welcomed to the Salone by Slow Food vice-president Roberto Burdese by president of the Slow Food for Biodiversity Piero Sardo, and the Piedmont Regional Authority Agriculture secretary Cavallera, and began his tour of the Salone with a visit to the Slow Food in Pavilion 2.
The former USSR president showed great interest in the history of the Slow Food movement, in particuar its criticism of a certain social and economic system and its activities in defense of biodiversity.
Gorbachev also visited the International Presidia stands, where he spoke breifly to deleates from Terra Madre, the first World Meeting of Food Communities
After a brief stopover at the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity, Gorbachev was joined by the Slow Food president Carlo Petrini and president of the Piedmont Region Authority Enzo Ghigo for a discussion about biodiversity and the ‘new poverty’.