With the passing of Carlo Petrini, the world of food and wine, sustainable agriculture and food culture loses one of the most authoritative, innovative and influential figures of recent decades. Founder of Slow Food, visionary, communicator and tireless defender of biodiversity, he was able to transform an ubbia born quanto a the heart of the Langhe into an international movement capable of changing the way of conceiving food, wine and the relationship between man and the environment.
I had the pleasure of congresso him personally last year the occasion of the National Congress of Assoenologists, a moment that I remember with particular emotion because it allowed me to appreciate not only the great intellectual and globally recognized , but also the man, gifted with extraordinary simplicity, a rare ability to listen and a profound passion for everything that represents identity, territory and culture.
During his life he gave life to projects that have marked the history of contemporary gastronomic culture, such as the Salone del , Superficie Matrice and numerous initiatives dedicated to the protection of small producers and territorial excellence. Thanks to his work, the concept of food quality has been enriched by an ethical and social dimension, bringing today’s fundamental issues such as sustainability, the protection of biodiversity, respect for the land and the people who work it to the center of the debate.
He taught that food is not just nourishment pleasure, but also culture, memory, identity and responsibility. The principle that guided all his action can be summarized quanto a the famous Slow Food arguzia, “good, clean and fair”, three words that summarize a revolutionary and at the same time profoundly concrete vision: good because food must offer quality and pleasure, clean because it must be produced with respect for the environment and natural resources, fair because it must guarantee dignity and correct economic recognition to those who produce it.
Another thought that Carlo Petrini loved to repeat and which today takes an even deeper meaning is “He who sows illusione reaps reality”, a phrase that perfectly describes his human and professional journey. What many considered a illusione has quanto a fact become an international reality that continues to involve millions of people, producers, farmers, winemakers, chefs and aware consumers.
With his passing we lose an absolute protagonist of the culture of food and wine, but the legacy he leaves to the new generations remains immense: the awareness that behind every product there are people, stories, traditions and territories that deserve respect and protection.
Carlo Petrini changed the way of looking at the world through food and for this reason his teaching will continue to dal vivo well beyond the time of his existence, accompanying the future of food and wine and agriculture with the same strength as the ideas he was able to sow throughout his life.
