A New Way of
Eating:
Slow Food's Contribution
to a Shift in American
Food Culture.
By Darcy Mullen
The Slow Food Movement
 Started in 1986
 Carlo Petrini voted President
 Combating Standardization and
Globalization
 International Movement by 1989
 15 countries at first conference in Paris
 Promotion of values through different
forms of education
 Organized tastings, publications,
university and school programs
Buono, Pulito e Giusto:
Good, Clean and Fair.
 Working to save the traditional food cultures.
 In the Slow Food movement there is a mutual understanding
between the producers and consumers of the quality of the
product.
 Fast food has become even more prevalent in recent years
making Slow Food’s objectives more pertinent.
 Slow Food is combating many of the effects of fast food.
 The name is the opposite of fast food.
The Growth of Fast Food in
America
 McDonald’s developed drive-in
restaurants into a factory style production
– built for efficiency
 Their production goal is to create a
standardized product, no matter where
you are.
 McDonald’s now controls consumption
and production of the majority of beef,
pork, tomatoes, lettuce, potatoes and
apples in the United States.
Obesity in America since
the start of Fast Food.
 400,000 deaths per year are caused by obesity
related diseases1.
 Obesity has tripled in the last 30 years.2
 It now affects children, who have bad nutrition in
conjunction with their new, sedentary lifestyle
 The average child plays 7½ hours of video games a
day3
1Super
Size Me
2Letsmove.gov
3Letsmove.gov
Slow Food USA:
•Came to Brooklyn, New York in
the year 2000
•Today there are more than
200 local chapters around the
country.
•Programs started since they
have been active:
•Time for Lunch Campaign
•Youth Food Movement
•Renewing America’s Food
Traditions
Food culture beyond the Slow Food movement
•A growth of programs, books, and movies with similar themes:
•Super Size Me, Fast Food Nation, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Jamie
Oliver’s food revolution.
•Other projects like Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)
developed rapidly.
Contrasting governmental actions:
The United States
•Michelle Obama promotes
healthy eating, local foods, and a
movement fighting obesity.
•She created an organic garden
at the White House in March of
2009.
•Promotes education around
obesity and diabetes.
•Created the Let’s Move
Campaign
Italy
• The country in which Slow Food was started
already has a natural cultural value of food.
•Schools in some regions have been serving
biological food to school children for years already.
•The minister of agriculture has been
promoting the “McItaly” burger for
McDonald’s.
Luca Zaia, Italian
Minister of Agriculture
and Forestry
•An all-Italian product to help the economy
and farmers.
•Would use 1,000 tones of Italian meat each
month.
•Slow Food proponents around Italy are not
in support of this product.
Where does that leave us?
 The value of education is one of the most
important features in the Slow Food movement.
 As people who live in this culture, it is important to
see the value of food. Even small steps help.
 Everything ties back to health. If you are not
paying extra for healthier food, you will pay in
health care costs.
Thank you.