Slow Food –Farming for Biodiversity

An international eco‐gastronomic, member‐supported, non‐profit organization dedicated to sustaining a food system that is good for people, for the planet, and for future generations. 

• Connects producers and co‐producers• Educates consumers and children • Protects biodiversity• Organizes event and develops campaigns• Fosters network‐building and exchanges

Slow Food

Quality of food in the Slow Food sense is assessed by cultural, socialand environmental criteria:

Food must be good, clean and fair.The pleasure of good food goes hand in hand with the responsibilitytowards local communities and the environment.“Slow” Food is diverse, non‐standardised, not globalised; it is foodthat originates in culture and community.

Slow Food

Threats to our food system and future food supplies:• increasing scarcity of natural resources• destabilization of environmental systemsA threat to the food system also threatens global stability andprosperity, as it can aggravate poverty, disturb international trade,finance and investment, and destabilize governments.

Threats to our food system

How can we feed the planet, guaranteeing good, clean and fair foodfor everyone?Diversitymeans resilience, innovation and adaption.Biodiversity allows plants and animals to adapt to climate change,unexpected events and attacks by diseases and parasites.Diversity is at the centre of all Slow Food activities: diversity ofpeople and societies, of foods and flavours, and in particular agro‐biodiversity.

The importance of diversity

Biodiversity is under pressure from intensified farming and landabandonment.Ecosystems are 'degraded' – loss of basic services such as croppollination, clean air and water, or controlling floods and erosion.Loss of agro‐biodiversity makes food systems more vulnerable toclimate change (‘resilience gap`) and to volatility in prices for energyand waste, because in general ‘global varieties’ depend strongly onexternal inputs.

Threats to biodiversity

Today, only 12 plant species and 5 animal breeds provide more than70% of all our food.In the last century, 75% of the genetic diversity of agricultural cropsdisappeared and over 1,000 breeds were lost.Every hour, three species vanish. Every week, we lose two animalbreeds raised by humans.When that happens, we also lose know‐how, local economies,cultural heritage, weaken landscape and resource protection andother valuable aspects connected to these foods.

Threats to biodiversity

The Slow Food Ark of TasteThe Ark of Taste is a catalog of forgotten and endangered foods –traditional specialties, animal breeds and plant varieties.Traditional foods are well adapted to the environmental conditionsand therefore vital elements in any climate change resiliencestrategy.Their potential to thrive in their original territories (like in deserts orthe mountains) make them important agricultural resources andessential tools for food sovereignty.They are often connected to the culture of a local community(through customs, recipes, knowledge, dialect, etc.).

Slow Food Presidi ProjectsThe Slow Food Presidi are the operative arm of The Ark of Taste.These projects support artisan food producers to market theirtraditionally produced foods in the modern marketplace.These projects support quality production at risk of extinction;protect unique regions and ecosystems; recover traditionalprocessing methods; and safeguard native breeds and local plantvarieties.

In traditional food production and small‐scale farming, innovationmeets traditional knowledge and skill. Small‐scale production islocalised and enhances biodiversity as well as diversity in general.Small‐scale farmers, herders and fisherfolk sustainably managecultured and wild biodiversity, for example, in seminatural pastures,meadows and orchards.Man‐made vegetation types make up 30% of all the habitats whoseprotection is a legal duty under the EU Habitats Directive.

Food Diversity Production leads to..

….. Farming for the futureBoth projects do what Slow Food does best: communicate, bringtogether, form support networks, increase awareness through first‐hand experience (the sensory experience of tasting good food).Encourage to act: eat diverse, be curious!The projects reach further out beyond producers and consumers,involving communities, such as in the 10.000 Gardens for Africaproject, and gastronomy, i.e. Chef Alliance.Farming for the future: people take care of biodiversity, localise andhence secure a food system that is made by people for people.A food system that is diverse in all stages – from production toconsumption – support a diversity of knowledge and jobs.