Farmer's Markets. Some thoughts on hanging out in parking lots.

I'm starting to not understand why people give farmers markets a bad rap for being too expensive. realistically, it is an incredibly better value. 

environmentally, they have less cost on the damage done regarding carbon footprints because the food hasn't been flown across the world, transported from the farm to the distribution center to the store to the home. Farmers market farm vendors are located nearby and everything that they sell has to come from there. I don't understand how many times people ask if the food we have is our own. < < insert snooty comment > > 

nutritionally, the food at the farmers market is the freshest, generally just picked that morning, a smattering of hours before. Many items found in a grocery store are picked unripe, shipped to a distribution center where they sit in a huge room and then sprayed with ethylene when the stores are ready for them so that they ripen and look "perfect" for the customer. 

economically, the prices are usually pretty low for what you're getting quality-wise. I guess it depends on where your priorities are, if you want to spend money on good food, talk with the vendors and know where your food comes from, and support the local economy at the same time, then the prices are worth it. some prices will be cheaper because the farmer is trying to make a living also, has a ton of produce and is trying to get rid of it! sometimes they will be more expensive than buying them at the actual farm because they have to pay for the labor and transportation costs to get to the farmers market. what we call a "convenience charge." 

but then again, is the cheap, nutrition-less and tasteless conventional foods too cheap? who should be setting the standard and what is it? 

 whether or not you think farmers markets are more expensive, the reason i am wondering why people think farmers markets are unaffordable, inconvenient, and stay away from them, is because since I started working there, I have heard a ton of people question the price. After telling them their total, very often they will be thrown off and say: and I have this cookie too. or did you get the 6 ears of corn as well? only 80 cents for this as my dinner side, wow! 2 dollars for this ginormous head of lettuce, really? did you include the peaches too? yup, I saw that, got everything. What I think it is, is that people don't usually have much cash, so when they're emptying their wallets of the few bills they have, they feel as though they can't get much. A lot of people ask if we accept cards. It's the easy way to shop to just hand over the plastic. I did that today actually and my friend who owns the restaurant actually had to tell me that the wrap was on him. I didn't even realize the price as I just handed him my card, blindly and without thinking about the total. You could easily get your weekly shopping at a farmers market, one stop shopping and helping to support various local businesses in your community - obviously depending on the farmers market, they are all unique. It's just the arm carrying capacity and the lack of cash that I think tends to cause people to stay away. Not many people use cash anymore so physically seeing your money I think psychologically makes people think they are spending more. 

the first day of our new van. the start of the spring it wasn't very full. now it's been completely violated. 

 Another observation about farmers markets is that I don't understand the people that bring their own bags, thinking that they're super green, but then ask for the plastic bag for their produce. why does it need to be double bagged?? Pints and quarts I understand wrapping so that the berries don't roll around and get smushed, but other than that, the vegetables don't need to be separated in their own individualized bags, they can all be friends in there! and they should be washed before being used anyways, they're not going to get any dirtier unless your groady bag is dirty, so why all the plastic bags?? it drives me crazy.

 some shots around the portsmouth farmer's market. 

so grab your bags, get out some cash, come hang out in a parking lot, talk to the local businesses, know your fruits and vegs, run into your neighbors, and listen to some live music! 

 

Eataly in Italy.

Arina and I took a road trip to Piemonte one weekend in November. The main reason for going was that I wanted to speak with a winery I visited in September about a possible work experience after graduation in March. I also didn't get a chance to go to Eataly while attending Terra Madre in October. I don't know what I expected from Eataly. It certainly carries some beautiful products but it feels more like a gallery than a grocery store. The vegetables are displayed as though they are being sold from a cart on a cobblestone street. There aren't crates on top of crates like most supermarkets, but a limited selection of carefully placed vegetables as though they are being set up for a still life painting. They burst with life as a woman sprays each with a water spritzer as though they are a rich couple lying on chaise lounge chairs on a beach in St Tropez and being cooled down by a tanned strappingly-good-looking butler. The same woman scurries over to us with plastic gloves before we even dare to touch a vegetable ourselves.

The seafood section carries curious varieites of fish, both fresh and packaged, as a young boy sits at a table looking completely bored as he offers passer-byers some samples.

origin: "medit" 

 The cheese counter is glorious and we pass by a couple times to taste the samples being offered.

The meat counter brightly showcases red cuts of meat from head to trotters to rolls of skin. All of it is from Italy, mostly Piemontese, none of it is Chianina. 

testa = head

feet smell better with rosemary.

i'm not sure what you do with pig skin.

We were overwhelmed by oodles of olive oils and a slew of pasta shapes and sizes. 

Over a margharita pizza (I really like the in-store dining option - who isn't hungry when surrounding by beautiful food?), we raised some questions which lead into a discussion and brought us to a shared confusion. We had thought that Eataly and Slow Food were connected, however, it appeared too fancy and seemed like the people that are able to afford to shop there would not be the same people that Slow Food is trying to protect. Maybe it just felt expensive because it looked expensive. My poor student's empty wallet refused me the ability of looking at prices or even considering a small purchase. The Slow Food Presidia products, which are part of Slow Food's face towards the world, were  kept downstairs with hardly any information about them (or at least from what I saw...) We were confused too about the qualifications to have products be sold in Eataly - how does Eataly choose which brands and what farmers to include and do they have to pay for shelf space - in which case many farmers would not be able to afford an inclusion in Eataly. While slowly devouring the last bite of thin crust pizza - saving the best bite with the most mozzarella and little sprig of basil - I couldn't help but think that it seemed like a big contradiction that only reinforced the idea people have about Slow Food being elitist. We learned in class that consumers can change the market, but if so, what does Eataly in Torino and opening up recently in NYC say about the current market? I couldn't tell if the shoppers were locals, regulars, or tourists, but they certainly were not the people we saw selling their products in Terra Madre. Maybe the prices are fair, and it is worthwhile to pay for high-quality products, maybe it was unusual to have such a shopping experience that was a combination of Whole Foods and Dean & Deluca that's so different from walking to the corner A&O, but regardless of what it is or what it represents, it's certainly good to be curious and discuss these questions. But then again, that's what we do all the time - talk about food, the future, the university, life in Italy and eat good pizza.

 With our heads filled with dizzying questions about our association with Slow Food and everything we have learned this year, we didn't leave empty handed - especially after we drove 3 hours! A 5L glass jug could be filled with 2 euro per litre of red Piemontese wine. This was within our budget, priorities, and was justified by deciding to share it with the neighbours ;) Anyways, the glass jug was beautiful - how could it not be filled with cheap yet drinkable wine?

  I wonder how the NYC Eataly will compare and if the words "food miles," "carbon footprints" or "local" will briefly escape my thoughts....

Salone del Gusto

As we walked into the great halls of Salone del Gusto, the world's largest food fair, I was beyond overwhelmed. There were hundreds of booths and stalls offering information and samples of their products. It isn't only about tasting food, it is about learning about the products, but of course, in a food fair, there are people who grab samples without looking at the name, where it's from or barely recognizing what it tastes like before they stuff another sample into their mouth. Some of the booths have abundance of samples, some require a payment or donation, some have really nice packaging and marketing campaigns that they hardly seem small scale or artisinal, some are really enthusiastic to talk about their products, some use unique techniques like half dressed women in aprons to attract patrons, while others lure you in to buy their products so that they can fund their way home. It was fantastic to taste these products from all over the world with people who wanted to share, until there was the pressure to buy. Then it lost the point of the fair.

Just one of many Italian cheeses.

Calabrian Chili Peppers. Beautiful.

Tuscan Beans. Made friends with them and their minestrone bean cart. Delicious. 

Women weaving Tomatoes.

 The largest of the rooms was occupied and sorted by different regions of Italy. Cheese, Emilia-Romagna cured meats, Tuscan olive oil, Basilicata cured meats, Piemontese cheese, Sardinian cheese, Trentino wine, balsamic vinegars, artinsal beers, Val d'Aosta cheese, grappa, Friuli wine, chocolates, preservatives, bread, Puglia olives, Lazio cured meat, Sicilian cannolis, cheese, Campagnia olive oil, bread, Tuscan wine, artisinal beer, Calabrian spices, cheese, cured meat, cheese (notice a common Italian theme?) let alone a ton of Slow Food Presidium products - red celery, turnips, onion, peppers, lentils, beans, biscuits, fish, fruits, and cheeses and cured meats of course. 

Dried Goat Jerky.

Beautiful Chocolates.

Spicy Cheese.

Red Aubergine.

Cannoli the size of his foot. and he ate it all. 

We wandered through, wide-eyed. We were unsure of the etiquette - could we just taste and sample our hearts out without having to buy anything? We couldn't walk more than 2 steps without having more overloaded plates of samples in front of us. A new pant-size amount of cheese samples and a rice-based beer later, we made it into the international hall - my favourite part. Here were booths with most, but not exclusively, international presidia products from all over the world. Honeys, Spanish cured meats, Latvian bread, Bulgarian beans, Scottish haggis, French foie gras, Norwegian dried cod, German cured meats and cheese, Polish sausages and knishes, American craft beers, Mexican mescal, French ground-cured-multi-aged cheeses, Tibetan Yak wool and cheese, Chilean peppers, Peruvian potatoes, Latvian tree sap beverages, a Korean restaurant, Swiss cheeses that were shaved like truffles, Spanish seaweed, Austrian pit cabbage, Afghanistan raisins, rums from around the world, UK beers, Welsh salt, German beers, Macedonian dried figs and pickled cabbage, Central American coffees, Dutch oysters, lobsters, and cheese, Czech beers, and of course Irish raw milk cheese and a stall from Board Bia. 

Tibetan Yak Cheese. Way Fattier Than Cow's. too cold for an internship.

Scrumptious Latvian Bread, with leaves...

The Mexican Stand.

American Craft Beer. Way to represent, America. Hello, NH!

Japanese Oysters.

Dutch Oysters.

Spicy Mexican Insects. we tried to go back for more...

I could probably go on and on and on but it would be impossible to taste everything. It wasn't just about the tasting the different products, it was about talking to the producers and asking them questions. Some of them were asleep at the stalls, some look bored, but most of them were enthusiastic to talk about their products. They had a lot of pride. They had a lot invested in their products - to most of them, this was their livelihood. They had all traveled a long way to be here, they should show off what they have to offer.

Waldo and Juan from Chile. 

The international pavilion was by far my favourite.

Terra Madre & Salone del Gusto: Opening Ceremony

I don't know if I realized how lucky I was to attend UNISG this year until we arrived in Torino for Terra Madre and Salone del Gusto. Sure, next year the students may be able to go to Slow Cheese or Slow Fish, but Terra Madre and Salone del Gusto are by far the biggest and most important for Slow Food and it only happens every two years.

We left early Thursday morning to arrive in time for the Opening Ceremony. I felt a little overwhelmed for not having any idea what to expect from the weekend. Despite our lecture on Salone del Gusto, which really just explained the outline of the event's floor plan, fascinating, there was no way for me to be prepared. I think I am still trying to process the immenseness of the events experienced throughout the weekend.

"I don't need a pass, I'm a pecorino." - J

With passes hung around UNISG lanyards, we walked into the giant arena, Palasport Olimpico, which was originally built for the Olympics. We filled the seats as we watched people from all over the world, wearing their traditional outfits - often shoes and underpants excluded - walking around with suitcases having just arrived, chatting and introducing each other. A rainbow of coloured clothes and skins trickled in as there were kimonos with high heels, headdresses that could easily block the person sitting behind, Middle Eastern robes with Nikes, and we curiously eyed the UNISG students from Pollenzo identifiable by our new school-labeled t-shirts. Whether they were farmers, producers, musicians, educators, fishermen, chefs, students, or supportive guests, everyone was there for the same reason: as Sergio Chiampanino the Mayor of Turin said, to come together to exchange goods and ideas in order to reach a resepct that doesn't only enrich a few people. If we rearrange the hierarchy of values, not material values, we can change the world through how we relate to each other and use Terra Madre as an engine to promote these relations amongst each other. 

The fourth edition of Terra Madre kicked off with 300 school children, "Pequenas Huellas" from all over the world singing with the Orchestra Internazionale Per La Pace. They sang in various languages and played while representatives from Afria, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceana walked in proudly waving colourful country flags.  From each of the five continents was a representative speaker addressing the audience in their native languages.

the choir and orchestra.

Malebo Mancha Maze, a Gamo from a mountain area in Ethiopia spoke to us, loud and clear. He animatedly shared an anecdote about 5 bulls and a hyaena: 5 bulls went to the low land where the grass was nice and tasty, spending the whole day grazing. They joined their rears together in a circle with their horns facing out ready to attack. The hyaena came and said to get rid of the white bull and they would be safe forever. So, the white bull was sacrificed. One by one the pack got lighter and it was easier for the hyaena to wipe out the bulls. The lesson is, if all of us, brought together from 150 countries, embrace each other and work together, we can survive.

Africa represents.

Adolfo Timotio from Brazil didn't look up once during his speech. He heavily stressed the process of colonization that the Guarani went through from the Spanish, Portuguese, English and Dutch who brought borders, diseases, slavery and genocide. He implored us to recognize the indigenous people and to guarantee the application of the law to them as we all are the custodians of the world - we need to look after it and make sure that all differences are respected. He was so bitter, I wonder what it was like for him to be in Italy - the colonizer.

Americas. North, Central and South.

Albina Morilova, dressed in a traditional Kamchadal headdress, was from the extreme western part of Russia where for 7-8 months of the winter the temperatures are below 40C. Through describing her culture, she discussed the importance of conveying knowledge to new generations. Her indigenous  culture has had to adopt the Russian culture and their traditional language is in danger of extinction as teachers nor youth are interested in learning or preserving it. 

Asia.

Ol-Johan Sikku is a Sami, an indigenous group from the area of Northern Sweden, Norway, Finland and the Kola Penninsula of Russia. He too talked of the exploited land that divided his people but hoped for a rivival of language, culture and land through community development. As we have borrowed from Mother Nature, he said, we can no longer live in the same nature, but we have the knowledge to work together to advise the rest of the world on how to protect it. 

Europe. Yay Ireland.

Aunty Beryl Van Oploo from SW New South Wales in Australia also talked about her indigenous culture and about a college of aboriginal culture and cuisine. 

I swear the translator called this part of the world "Oceana"

 Carlo Petrini, the Slow Food International President, supported what each of these indigenous speakers had to say, agreeing that the defense of traditional knowledge gives us the tools to not only create good practices and respect nature, but we can start a dialogue to support those least considered by politics and media: natives, farmers, women, and the elderly. These humble, modest people need to show us the right way towards the future as they are the ones who preserve the earth and give the world common sense. Petrini also strongly addressed the youth in the audience who he believes have a great opportunity to match and combine modern science that we know with the traditional knowledge from our ancestors. To connect these is an extrodinary challenge, the best challenge ahead of us and the best struggle to fight for. Since we (I will consider myself part of the youth) are the subjects and creators of the transformation need, we need to grow and decrease at the same time - not only increase the development of material goods, efficiencies and profits, but to develop the love, friendship and understanding amongst people. His main three points to come away from were to enhance diversity, strengthen reciprocity, and to encourage dialogues and meetings.  For Petrini, and what he wanted us all to understand and feel, was that being here, getting together for the weekend, would prove to be more valuable than all the money in the world as we open each other up to new experiences, beliefs, and languages. It will force us to go home stronger, to not only defend and expand our networks, but to live intensely. 

Carlo Petrini: the man behind it all.

It was empowering and encouraging and Petrini's energy could be felt throughout the entire arena. I left feeling like I had every capability to make a change in the world. I also left thinking that it wasn't anything new that I hadn't already read in his book, Terra Madre. Slow Food is a powerful movement but not without its problems and I understand that Petrini's speech was reinforcing the basic foundation and principles of the movement but a slight change in approach could strengthen it - if something isn't working, something can always be altered. I left unsure if I wanted to return again in two years, but the Opening Ceremony still had not prepared me for the weekend to come.

afterwards, the Greeks started dancing and Popi joined in.

(This was all from my notes and observations from the presetation, but more information and Carlo Petrini's translated speech can be found here.)

"Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaking suspicion... love actually is all around." - Hugh Grant as Prime Minister in Love Actually.