Carlo Petrini, Founder of Slow Food-- in Chicago, May 19

Carlo Petrini, founder of the Slow Food movement, will be in Chicago on May 19th, to give a talk about his new book:

Slow Food Nation: Why our Food Should be Good, Clean, and Fair.

Petrini is the charismatic founder and driving force of the international Slow Food Movement. He will speak in downtown Chicago on Saturday afternoon, May 19th, and his talk will focus on three strategies outlined in his new book:

1) defending biodiversity
2) promoting taste education
3) building of local food communities.

Traveling the world in order to write Slow Food Nation, Petrini witnessed first-hand the myriad of ways that local and native peoples feed themselves without making use of the methods employed by agribusiness and the food industrial complex.

The book relates anecdotes about the behaviors of peoples in places as varied as Chiapas, Mongolia, Puglia, Bangladesh, and Sweden. He concludes that the food we eat should be healthful and delicious (good); sustainably produced using environmentally sensitive methods (clean); by producers who are justly compensated and treated with dignity (fair).

Date: Saturday, May 19th, 2:00 pm
Location: Thorne Auditorium, Northwestern University School of Law. In downtown Chicago, 375 E. Chicago Ave. at N. Lake Shore Drive.
Admission cost: $5, with advance reservations strongly advised. Students and faculty with valid ID, admitted for free.
To Reserve: On-line here or call the Chicago Humanities Festival, 312.661.1028, ext 40.

Petrini will present his lecture in Italian with an onstage translator. Afterwards he will be available to sign books, with on-site sales provided.

"Throughout history, all of humanity has always wanted to produce food also to produce pleasure. The poorest nations of the world eat very poor food. But these people, with culture, they transform an economy of subsistence into good food. Our grandparents had this knowledge, how to make something good out of nothing. So this is fundamental pleasure. And it is a grand alliance in changing the world. This idea is part of the complexity of a new gastronomy. We can't change the world by just preaching boring messages. We have to re-discover the value of taste and understand that at its root, taste is connected to pleasure. Taste is pleasure that reasons, or knowledge that enjoys." -- Carlo Petrini

Nobody going to this?

I will be in attendance!

Alfonso XIV wrote:Petrini will present his lecture in Italian with an onstage translator.

That's the deal breaker for me, although I know there will be a respectable LTH Forum showing.

And this isn't enough of a deal-breaker?

http://ranchogordo.typepad.com/rancho_g ... vs_th.html

Ouch!

I'd like to attend, but I have tickets to see the president of the Slow Talkers of America.

Despite the Italian and having missed the link posted up-thread, I still attended.

For me it was my first glimpse into his philosophy and movement. I had a basic understanding of Slow food, had read the website, etc... But it was nice to hear him speak about the importance of supporting local agriculture and being a part of the process.

I obviously don't have the anxiety that the person in that previously posted blog does about him as I do view the Slow Food movement as a whole to be something of interest and importance.

Actually, I don't think the Rancho Gordo post is a dealbreaker. Within every movement there are disagreements and schisms - for example, I watched over time (1996 to present) as the American Cheese Society, albeit less openly, engaged in internecine warfare and sniping. Cheesemakers hate cheesemakers, retailers battle each other, and cheesemakers quit the ACS in disgust. It doesn't surprise me at all that the folks in SF take Petrini to task for the quoted passage. But the author seems to take issue with the description and Petrini's focus on cost and patronage, not Petrini's overall thesis around his movement and the book.

To me, what is important about Slow Food, and why I think it is vital even if most of the events seem to cater to well-to-do, monied foodies, is that it raises awareness of issues around the industrialization of food and foodservice worldwide. I am grateful that Slow Food and other groups are doing their part to help bring attention to the preservation of animal breeds in decline, heirloom seeds, traditional foodways and traditional agriculture. So Petrini says some kooky things in his book that offend the educated gentlemen and women farmers and their customers in the Bay Area. Is that really a good reason to abandon the Slow Food Movement?

Alas, I did not attend the lecture -- I, ironically, had to work at the NRA show.

bring attention to the preservation of animal breeds in decline, heirloom seeds, traditional foodways and traditional agriculture.

All done long before there ever was a Slow Food. These breeds would not be available to preserve if they hadn't been maintained all these years by someone.

Seed Savers is from 1975. Long before there ever was seed savers, there were herbariums all over the world preserving these botanical artifacts. I was at a herbarium a fews years ago where they were being petitioned to return botanical artifacts collected in 1852!

Providing a market segment to buy products may be the achievement. Preserving is really to be credited to many people through the generations.

Regards,

Cathy, I think you are taking what I wrote rather literally. Of course there have been people dedicated to preserving heirloom breeds, seeds, and foodways long before Petrini ever protested the McDonald's in Rome in 1986 (yes, I pay attention to their website). But the point remains that Slow Food has done a lot to raise awareness of these issues with a large group of people who might otherwise have continued living their lives without any knowledge of the issues behind the industrialization of food.

Louisa Chu wrote:And this isn't enough of a deal-breaker?

http://ranchogordo.typepad.com/rancho_g ... vs_th.html

I had Sig. Petrini's nearly undivided attention for 2+ hours at TAC on Saturday night, where, amongst a great many other things, I made a point of touching on the matter you reference. Suffice it to say that my time spent with the man was most enjoyable, and I left with my convictions about the overall nobility, fairness and benevolence of his organization fully intact.

At any rate, in a former life, I spent 3+ years in the sustainable agriculture field as both an instructor and a practicing professional, and I have no doubt that my ability to empathize with the market farmers who felt slighted in this case is far greater than your own.*

E.M.

*For a good portion of this time, I ran a CSA/Market Garden on 2 intensively-planted acres in the Piedmont area of North Carolina.

Erik M. wrote:

Louisa Chu wrote:And this isn't enough of a deal-breaker?

http://ranchogordo.typepad.com/rancho_g ... vs_th.html

I had Sig. Petrini's nearly undivided attention for 2+ hours at TAC on Saturday night, where, amongst a great many other things, I made a point of touching on the matter you reference.

What did he say to you about it?

Louisa Chu wrote:What did he say to you about it?

It should be clear from my original post that I refuse to be quoted on the matter.

At any rate, as a member of the professional food media, you shouldn't have any trouble securing an official statement from the following sources:

Carlo Petrini
President
Slow Food International
Via della Mendicità Istruita n° 8
12042 Bra (Cuneo) Italy
+39.0172.419611

Erika Lesser
Executive Director
Slow Food USA
20 Jay St No 313
Brooklyn NY 11201
718.260.8000

CUESA
One Ferry Building
Suite 50
San Francisco, CA 94111
415.291.3276

E.M.

Erik M. wrote:

Louisa Chu wrote:What did he say to you about it?

It should be clear from my original post that I refuse to be quoted on the matter.

So the only contribution here is self aggrandizement?

As it happens, Slow Food is circulating a letter from Petrini to the Ferry Plaza organizers offering his explanation. To wit,

Dear CUESA,

I was quite surprised to learn in the past few days about some negative
reactions to a passage called ³Green California² in my just-published book,
Slow Food Nation, and wanted to take a moment to try to explain my
intentions and clarify what I believe happened.

First of all, I want to apologize for any offense caused by this passage,
whether to your organization or the many farmers who are your members and
collaborators. It was absolutely not my intention to denigrate or attack
the farmers of the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market or of any farmers market,
for that matter. I hope that you will consider the rest of my book, not to
mention the range of Slow Food projects I have founded over the past twenty
years, a testament to the deep admiration I feel for the farmers who grow
sustainably and depend on the direct market economies of farmers markets,
both in the United States and around the world. The network of farmers and
food producers that we brought together at Terra Madre has only helped to
reinforce how strongly I believe in the importance of farmers as defenders
of the earth and stewards of our future.

In part, I believe that the translation of this passage was, unfortunately,
not as accurate as it should have been, and that the misinterpretation of
certain phrases and the omission of a few key words resulted in a tone that
differs significantly from the spirit of what I wrote in Italian. In fact,
my original words were meant to demonstrate the positive impression I had of
the two farmers with whom I spoke, based on their apparent success in making
farming a viable livelihood for themselves.

I have also come to realize that this specific passage may be vulnerable to
misunderstandings when judged outside of the context of the chapter in which
it resides, not to mention the book in its entirety. For this I can only
apologize for the imperfections of my own writing, in my attempt to explore
some of the contradictions that exist within the highly relative concept of
sustainability.

The loss of biodiversity in our food supply; the rights of migrant farm
workers; the elitism argument against organic and artisanal foods; not to
mention the twin epidemics of obesity and hunger that plague our planet, are
all contradictions which we need to acknowledge and explore in a way that
respects multiple cultures and points of view.

I believe strongly that the only way in which we can overcome these
contradictions is to create a dialogue where we face these issues with an
open mind and a generous heart. I very much look forward to meeting with
you on Saturday where we can come together to recognize our common values in
the pursuit of food that is good, clean and fair.

In friendship,

Carlo Petrini
President
Slow Food International

Carlo Petrini wrote:I believe strongly that the only way in which we can overcome these
contradictions is to create a dialogue where we face these issues with an
open mind and a generous heart. I very much look forward to meeting with
you on Saturday where we can come together to recognize our common values in
the pursuit of food that is good, clean and fair.

Hmmm... will have to bookmark this for future LTH dustups...

m'th'su wrote:So the only contribution here is self aggrandizement?

That was hardly my intention, Michael, but I don't doubt it might appear that way to a pair of red (or green) eyes. No, my intention was only to stand in defense of a cheap shot by your colleage in a manner appropriate to my circumstance. After all, I am not a Slow Food member or representative, and conversations that I had with Slow Food members and representatives on the matter were entirely "off the record," before any public statements had been made. In any case, I fully expected something similarly vitriolic from you at some point in time, whether in public or in private. After all, it is no secret that I make a point to exclude you from these sorts of occasions whenever it is in my power to do so.

E.M.

While I am not sure that the tone of the defense of SF here has actually helped its image much, I think there are a couple of points that got lost in the shuffle and were pointed out to me recently.

First, the letter quoted above was sent prior to the complaining blog entries Louisa linked to, as I understand it. The letter reads to me as an apology and attempt to mend fences. As always, the negative is what gets people's attention and makes the news, not the reconciliation, and for whatever reason it seems the negative will always outlive the resolution. I know that is how it works and so be it. But the whole brouhaha is more than a litlle out of date, given the letter.

Secondly, it was a little courageous if it was intentional to address publicy the class and wealth issues that dog this movement. Today it seems to me that the primary impact of the Slow Food movement in the developed world is to give the affluent more access to exotic, luxury goods - in this case food - that they would not otherwise be able to get. If the ultimate goal is to move beyond that and eventually replace all the fast food with slow food, this needs to be acknowledged and plans made to get there.

Ferry Market, Chez Panisse, Vie, Rick Bayless and all the other places and people that support and nuture artisanal producers are doing a good thing, certainly, because it is better that this food is available and continues to be produced. But it is not always clear that they are more than just producers and purveyors of luxury goods, often profiting handsomely from it. Carlo's sin seems to have been to point that out, rather than maintaining some fiction that the farmers of Ferry Market are just simple peasants, toiling long and hard for no reward other than to provide good, honest food to the equally simple peasants of San Francisco. Did his comments come off as snarky? Yup, as he acknowledged and apologized for. But they are mostly factual too, even if they could be applied to much of the Slow Food movement as well.

Rick Bayless, however, seems to have a clearer plan to "dirty his hands" if you will, not just in the world of artisanal food, but also in the world of fast food, with the publicly stated intention of changing that world. He has been savaged for this, probably as he expected, but has chosen to continue the effort, following up his BK venture with his Macy's food court joint. The plan is to change fast food, with the clear conviction that if you give people the opportunity to taste better stuff, they will soon demand it. Kudos to Rick both for taking this on, and also for ignoring the criticisms for the most part - I have a lot of respect for Rick.

SF has many initiatives with a similar goal, but the fact is that much of the Slow Food movement's success is based on the economics of purveying slow food as a luxury good. One can argue about the harm that stating this publicly can do, but once it is out there, it is out there. Furthering the ill will, attacking back, and continuing the spat may feel good, but it does not do anything good for Ferry Market or Slow Foods, as I see it.

And I can't say I am terribly surprised that Ferry Market and its vendors make good money and that some of the customers are affluent and well coiffed.

Feel free to point out how I am wrong, as always...