Consumer Awareness and Food Activism in Perugia
The STFS 330: Sustainability and Food Production in Italy class visited the restaurant Nadir, for a lecture on Fair Trade commerce and ingredients, thanks to Ponte Solidale Fair Trade shop. Students were introduced to the main principles and ideals behind Fair Trade (market access for marginalized producers; sustainable and equitable trading relationships; capacity building and empowerment; consumer awareness raising and advocacy; fair trade as a “social contract”) and had the chance to talk to Chef Francesca Taticchi. Chef Francesca explained her job in the kitchen as a way to make small changes in the community through food, by promoting the local economy with its seasonal products, and supporting Fair Trade projects for products that cannot be sourced locally. At the end of the lecture, students had the chance to taste cous cous, produced by Palestinian women, with seasonal vegetables, chickpea flour fritters, and a vegan cake with Fair Trade chocolate and coconut milk. The excursion was an informative and delicious way to get behind the scenes of sustainable food cultures and food activism in Perugia!