Slow Food and Jamie Oliver Endorse Milan Protocol

Slow Food points to the need for a Global Agreement on Food, which is endorsed by international cooking phenomenon Jamie Oliver, one of the world’s most popular and socially committed chefs.

At Salone del Gusto, Slow Food and Jamie Oliver, one of the world’s most popular chefs, gave their endorsement to the Milan Protocol (www.milanprotocol.com), promoted by the Barilla Center for Food and Nutrition Foundation. The Protocol aims to raise awareness about the urgency of taking action to tackle the challenges involved in making the global food system truly sustainable. Specifically, it calls for a 50% reduction by 2020 of the huge amount of food wasted in the world, the promotion of a more sustainable agricultural system, and the war on hunger and obesity through healthy lifestyles.

“The Milan Protocol offers an extraordinary opportunity to focus attention, opportunities for change and, most importantly, the planning skills of the institutions, civil society and enterprise on a concern we all share. Slow Food has been contributing right from the outset to the process of drafting the Protocol: for those who sign and support, it represents a formal commitment; clear facts that open the way to equally clear production and government policies, which can be translated into actions that can be measured in the future,” says Slow Food founder and president Carlo Petrini, “It is only through the work of many people, in every corner of the planet, that we can pursue our vision of food which is accessible to everyone and which doesn’t compromise the health of the planet and living organisms.”

Jamie Oliver is a chef and food activist who has transformed the lifestyles of people all over the world and their approach to food, placing the emphasis on quality, sustainability and saving money for families.“My belief is that it’s every child’s human right to be fed properly and to be educated about food, where it comes from and how it affects their body. However, this can only happen if we rectify the mess that the global food system has found itself in today. – asserts Jamie Oliver – The Milan Protocol joins people, businesses and governments in one united front so that together we can challenge the status quo, demand more ethical and sustainable practices in the food industry, and secure a better future for our children. By coming together as one global voice with one common goal, we can ensure positive, lasting change.”

Since 2002, the Jamie Oliver Food Foundation has been on a mission to shape the health and wellbeing of current and future generations by providing better access to food education for everyone. We believe that to tackle the major food issues outlined in the Milan Protocol, people need to understand why we need a food revolution in the first place. By promoting the protocol and championing the importance of food education, we aim to engage, educate and inspire everyone to think more and demand more. The Milan Protocol intends to be the policy document of Expo 2015 and, most importantly, of the post Expo period. How will we feed the planet? This is an issue that must involve industry, politics, associations, producers and universities. The key to this is collaboration – good, positive, sustainable change can only happen if we work together.

For further information, please contact:

℅ Slow Food Paola Nano, +39 329 8321285 [email protected]c/o Regione Piemonte: Tel. +39 011 4322549 [email protected]

c/o Comune di Torino: Tel. +39 011 4423605 [email protected]

Organized by Slow Food, the region of Piedmont and the city of Turin in collaboration with the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies, the international Salone del Gusto event is coming back to Turin, Italy, this year in its 10th edition. Dedicated to the world of food, Salone del Gusto is once more united into a single event with the international meeting of Terra Madre, the network of small-scale producers from around the world, which is now in its 10th year. Salone del Gusto and Terra Madre 2014 will be held from October 23-27 in Turin’s trade fair Centre Lingotto Fiere and see the presence of over 1000 exhibitors from 130 countries.