Many of us have contemplated the same thing while meandering through tidy grocery aisles: Where did all of this food come from?
This seemingly basic question about what we eat often has a complicated answer. But not long ago, our food chain wasn’t concealed and cryptic. It centered on community.
In Boulder County and across the globe, Slow Food empowers farmers and consumers to reclaim this simpler, more conscientious way of life. It also aims to preserve local food traditions.
“We like to call ourselves the on-ramp to learning about your food system,” says Jodie Popma, board chair of Slow Food Boulder County, one of three chapters in Colorado.
The movement dates back to 1986, when Carlo Petrini co-founded the organization in response to the opening of a McDonald’s near the iconic Spanish Steps in Rome, Italy. Boulder County created one of the first Slow Food chapters in the U.S. in 1997.
Over the years, Slow Food has expanded its mission to address other issues, including the loss of biodiversity in nature and ensuring access to healthy, culturally appropriate food.
Even Colorado, a state with numerous farm-to-table restaurants and a robust farmers market scene, food systems can get complicated. Slow Food champions producers, growers, restaurants and retails that keep things close to home.
From a production standpoint, the local chapter promotes Boulder County’s farmers with the new Farmer Education Fund. This provides qualified local growers with financial assistance to attend workshops, conferences and skill‑building opportunities that support their businesses.
As it relates to distribution, Slow Food bolsters restaurants and retailers with its “Snail of Approval” award. The chapter considers several criteria when selecting honorees, such as their sourcing, environmental impact and community involvement. You’re likely familiar with several “Snails,” including Corrida, Basta and Blackbelly Market.
This award is also extended to farms with regenerative and organic practices. These eco-conscious aspects are standard among those that Slow Food chooses to promote—not only on its website and other platforms, but also at events like its upcoming CSA fair on March 29.
Consumers, another aspect of the local food system, are invited to attend in order to find the perfect CSA subscription. Short for community supported agriculture, CSAs are seasonal programs that directly benefit the region’s food system.
“When you purchase from a local farm, your funds really stay in your community,” says Popma. “It also lowers the greenhouse gas that takes from getting from point A to point B. You have higher nutrient value, too, because when you harvest something and it has to travel, those nutrients deplete naturally.”
It’s healthier, fresher and more eco-friendly food that’s ready for pick-up weekly through the harvest season. Farms provide recipes so you know that giant zucchini won’t go to waste, and several allow you to select add-ons.
Heirloom wheat pasta from Pastificio, loaves from Moxie Bread Company and more help pull together meals. The same goes for boxes from vendors like Grama Grass and Livestock, Five Freedoms Dairy and Boulder Valley Honey. The only drawback, for some, is the price.
Popma admits that the price point at the beginning of the season “can be a shocker, upwards of $400. However, the breaks down to about $8 to $12 a week, she notes, which is more affordable than what you’d pay for the same haul from the Boulder or Lafayette Farmers Market (which nevertheless, are also great ways to support local purveyors).
Slow Food Boulder County works closely with both markets, as well as two other organizations with a similar mission: Colorado Grain Chain and Rye Resurgence Project. But community-driven food demands more than passionate producers. It also requires engaged, educated consumers.
Along with its CSA fairs, Slow Food hosts other public events exactly for this purpose. The temporary Boulder Eats exhibit at the Museum of Boulder will host a discussion on food labels and systems on March 12, while Growing Gardens will welcome community members to dig into the soil on May 11. Cooking classes, fundraiser dinners and more appear on its calendar.
“We want to champion everybody that supports the local food system—because when we support that local food system, we become more resilient as a community,” says Popma.
