Hey you, slow down! - Slow Food USA is a non-profit organization dedicated to - preserving the culinary diversity of America and fighting - against the industrialization of food - Brief Article

"Slow food means learning how to manage our time, savoring food with pleasure and awareness. It is not so much the quantity of time we spend at the table that counts as the quality of the food we eat and the relationship we establish with it." --Slow Food USA web site

"We are pro small food production, and we are here to protect the U.S. food heritage," says Patrick Martins, president of Slow Food USA. Not "just another food and wine club," Slow Food is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the culinary diversity of America and fighting against the industrialization of food.

"We're an eco-gastronomic movement," said Martins. "Most mainstream groceries and fast foods have huge PR budgets, and small foods don't have that. We want to protect the U.S. food heritage." Foods they are seeking to preserve include thousands of apple varieties that are at risk of becoming extinct, different types of handcrafted cheeses and small-batch microbrews. "These are all in danger of being lost because they don't fit into the industrial package," said Martins.

The Slow Food movement began in Italy in 1986. Martins says that today there is a demand for knowledge affecting food issues. Since its inception, the organization has come to the U.S. where there are 55 Convivia (local groups). For a fee of $60, members receive the organization's magazine and newsletter, as well as invitations to special events.

Members span the spectrum in terms of age, education, background and race. "Slow Food transcends political views and socioeconomic status," said Martins. He ensures that the organization has no intention of being an elite movement. "On the contrary," says the Slow Food website, "one of its principles is to ensure the right of pleasure to all." For more information, visit the website at www.slowfood.com or (212) 988-5146.

COPYRIGHT 2001 PRIMEDIA Intertec, a PRIMEDIA Company. All Rights Reserved.
COPYRIGHT 2001 Gale Group