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Terra Madre

web eucalyptus citriodoraweb terr madre iranian farmer Pirmoradian ShokrollahSowing diversity with Austrian tomatoes. Image: Terra MadreAustralian delegate Patricia Tew. Image: Chas Hauxby

AUSTRALIAN farmers, food-makers, cooks, chefs, students and academics are part of a 12,000-strong international network building global awareness of the challenges of food sustainability and the wonders of ‘small, slow food’.

Terra Madre 2006. Image: Chas HauxbyTerra Madre – staged in the northern Italian city of Turin every even year – brings together food communities embracing the tenets of good, clean and fair and producing food sustainably.

Slow Food held the first edition of Terra Madre in 2004. Nearly 5000 delegates representing 1200 food communities from 130 countries participated, including farmers, fishermen, processors, distributors, cooks and agricultural specialists. In 2006, more than 5000 delegates were joined by 1000 chefs and cooks and 200 university technologists.

At each edition of Terra Madre participants attend workshops and panel discussions devoted to problems they encounter every day. They also explore broader food production issues, such as biodynamic farming and genetic engineering. Most importantly, they meet each other. Beekeepers from Turkey share their experiences with beekeepers from Zambia and Mexico. Bulgarian berry foragers get to know Canadian wild blueberry gatherers. Coffee growers from Ethiopia, Honduras and Laos discuss their work and possible solutions to common problems.

Terra Madre creates links among food producers, cooks and chefs throughout the world. Slow Food cultivates the on-going expansion of this network. Farmers, producers and distributors have since organised smaller meetings, set up websites to exchange ideas and worked to market and promote their products internationally. Slow Food is also working with communities to create dedicated small-scale projects.

Next edition

  • Nominate for Terra Madre 2010, from 21 to 25 Oct in Turin, Italy

Voices from a Slow world

Watch the Terra Madre movie

  • Part 1 ‘We will reclaim the integrity and intrinsic value of every life on earth’ [7:46]
  • Part 2 ‘We’re millionaires in many things but no so much in money’ [8:12]

Australian delegation

Terra Australis

  • Slow Food Australia has devised Terra Australis – a national edition of Terra Madre – to bring together Australian food communities in the lead-up to Terra Madre 2010. Producers, cooks and chefs from all regions of the country, particularly indigenous communities, who would like to be considered as Terra Australis participants can explore the plans for this event and lodge an interest.

Terra Madre website