Slow Food USA

10/13/2026

“Advocacy, to me, is about standing up for the things that are worth preserving.”

Those words from Greg Johnsman, founder of Marsh Hen Mill, co-owner of Millers All Day and Slow Food Advocate, remind us why National Farmers Day matters long after the calendar moves on.

Through his work with heirloom grains and traditional milling, Greg is helping keep regional food varieties, knowledge and traditions alive.

As he puts it, “If we don’t speak up for these things and create a market for them, they can disappear.”

Supporting regional farmers and producers means more than buying local. It means helping sustain the biodiversity, livelihoods and food knowledge that make our communities stronger.

A more robust and resilient food system is one rooted in many growers, diverse crops and people committed to keeping these traditions alive.

National Farmers Day was yesterday. Our commitment to the people growing our food continues every day. ❤️

Want to become a Slow Food Advocate and support farmers like Greg? Learn more about Campaign 4000 at the link in our bio!

10/12/2026

What if the problem with the food pyramid was never its shape, but whose knowledge it left out? Food is more than nutrition. It carries memory, identity, knowledge and a connection to place.

This Indigenous Peoples' Day, we're highlighting a powerful vision from Sean Sherman, The Sioux Chef, that's challenging how we think about food, nutrition and sovereignty.

His newly introduced RING Diet (Regional Indigenous Nutritional Guide) moves beyond a one-size-fits-all approach to nutrition. Instead, it recognizes that healthy food systems should reflect the land we live on, the biodiversity around us and the ancestral knowledge that continues to nourish communities today.

From wild rice and heirloom seeds to regional plants and traditional food practices, Indigenous food knowledge offers essential perspectives on building healthier, more connected food systems.

Indigenous Peoples' Day is an opportunity to recognize that Indigenous communities aren't just preserving food traditions. They're leading the way toward a different food future.

Read Sean Sherman's full vision for the RING Diet at the link in bio.

10/08/2026

Want your Chapter’s next potluck, farm dinner or community event to make the local news?

Join us October 13 at 7 p.m. ET for Building Good Relationships With the Media, a free webinar for Slow Food Chapter Leaders.

Slow Food South Willamette Chair Vanessa Salvia, a journalist and editor since 1999, will share practical tips for pitching reporters, timing your outreach and making sure your chapter is ready when a press inquiry comes your way.

Whether your chapter is brand new or has been around for years, you’ll leave with concrete tools for building media relationships and getting your work covered.

📅 October 13
⏰ 7 p.m. ET
🎟️ Register through the link in bio.

10/07/2026

Had such a wonderful time chatting with Chef Leah Di Bernardo of E.A.T. Marketplace (Temecula, CA) , one of Slow Food USA's delegates at Terra Madre 🇮🇹. Extraordinary Artisan Table

She shared why California's small organic farms matter, her work bringing regenerative farming and school garden programs to the next generation, and what "farm-to-fork" really means.

Stay tuned for more Terra Madre updates!

10/06/2026

We had the honor of meeting Manning Farmer and his son Darrell, guardians of a corn that much of the country believed had disappeared.

Developed at Bremo Plantation in Virginia during the 1820s from Native white flint and white gourdseed corns, Cocke’s Prolific became one of the South’s most important field varieties. True to its name, a single stalk could produce multiple ears.

Then it vanished from seed catalogs and nearly disappeared from public memory. For years, it remained on culinary historian David S. Shields’s list of the South’s most-wanted lost foods.

The breakthrough came when Angie Lavezzo, then of Sow True Seed, found a white dent corn listed on Craigslist as “Cox Prolific.” Its appearance closely matched historic images of Cocke’s Prolific.

David, Angie and Chris Smith of the Utopian Seed Project traveled to Landrum, South Carolina, where they met the Farmer family and discovered something remarkable: the corn had not disappeared. The family had been carefully growing and saving it for generations.

That is the Ark of Taste at work. We find foods at risk of being lost, tell the stories held within them and honor the people whose care has kept them alive.

Because sometimes, saving a food begins by recognizing the hands that never let it go. 🌽

10/02/2026

Earlier this month, we gathered at Prairie Fruits Farm & Creamery in Champaign, IL for a Joyful Dinner celebrating Central Illinois' regional grain economy.

We are grateful to our community, to all of our neighbors, growers, bakers, and all advocates for good, clean and fair food! So many of you showed up to support and to be part of this lovely evening.

A few Plant a Seed seed packets and books found new homes that night too. Thank you all! 🌱

This could happen in your community too. Sign up now to host your own Slow Food USA Joyful Dinner at joyfuldinnerseries.com. There are only 3 days left to register! 🐌

10/01/2026

"There is no life without symbiosis."

During the online conversation “Healthy Soil, Living Farm: Soil Fertility in Slow Food Farm,” Franz Rösl shared a composting method built around that idea.

Over 90% of the nutrients available to plants are made available by microorganisms, which means that farmers must create the conditions for that underground workforce to thrive. 🌱

Franz has been composting for 30 years, and he's straightforward about why he's sharing this for free: real, useful farming advice is rare because most of it only gets shared when there's something to sell.

So he's sharing techniques that are simple, low-cost, and doable anywhere in the world.

What are your favorite composting tips? Share in the comments below!

09/30/2026

Slow Food Youth Network (SFYN) and the Slow Food Coffee Coalition brought the coffee party and dance floor to Torino, Italy!

Producers, locals, consumers, and Terra Madre delegates came together to celebrate the people behind every good cup of coffee.

The Wake Up & Rave: SFYN’s Coffee Party featured three coffees from young growers:
☕ Fitsum, Ethiopia, supporting the Coffee Tribes of Guji
☕ Cesar, Villa Rica, Peru, part of the Comunidad Villa Rica Sustentable
☕ Merfi Isrina, Bajawa, Indonesia, protecting traditional forest coffee

Thank you to everyone who made this amazing morning happen!

09/29/2026