Messina: the first edition of Mangia e Cambia presented today at Palazzo Zanca

Messina: the first edition of Mangia e Cambia presented today at Palazzo Zanca.

Messina. Mangia e Cambia, the festival of agri-food culture, was presented today, Friday 10 November, during a press conference held in Zanca palace. The initiative, sponsored by the municipality of Messina and promoted by Messina Food Policy, with the support of Slow Food Messina and Slow Food Italy, predicts, from Tuesday 14th to Friday 17th November, three days of food and wine events, round tables, meetings, forums and taste workshops promoted by Messina Food Policy, Slow Food Messina and Slow Food Italy. The mayor will be present at the meeting Federico Basile and the assessors Massimo Finocchiaro, Alessandra Calafiore and Enzo Caruso, they took part Giacomo Pinaffo, general secretary of the MeSSInA Foundation; Nino Mostaccio, president of Slow Food Messina; And Barbara Nappini, president of Slow Food Italia (via video link from Turin).

“We can only thank the National Assembly of Slow Food Italia, which chose the city of Messina to present to the citizens the network built to trigger, through food, a concrete process of urban regeneration”, declared the mayor Basil, at the opening of the meeting. “Choosing Messina is always a source of pride for us Administration and for our entire community - he added Basile - in order to promote essential change processes together; among these the protection of the biodiversity of the Strait of Messina and the development of policies to support the ecological transition, as well as the defense of our agri-food excellence, to experience the city and human relations in a different way, to strengthen and build international contacts and attract tourists to have economic impacts on the territory".

“Our administrative vision is to encourage the development of projects that lead to economic and socio-educational benefits for the City. E Mangia e Cambia, an event focused on the relationship between territory and food, and which considers food a fundamental element for promoting change and sustainable tourism, represents – continued the councilor Finocchiaro – one of the characterizing points of our administrative action which is that of territorial promotion and marketing; and to achieve this we are networking with the productive realities of Messina and its province in order to create a shared path to strengthen a brand, from the agri-food to the food and wine one, capable of redesigning the image and livening up the economy of the City also at the across the Strait".

The commissioner Calafiore highlighted that "this is an initiative that involves the whole city in a collective manner and the final objective is set in a prospective perspective for the planning that we have implemented within the Pon Metro plus. Food belongs to everyone and it is right that there is shared knowledge; This is what we will try to do through specialized projects and activities which will also concern the DECO brand".

The commissioner Caruso stated that "food is part of the large macro-areas of tourism and culture; it is possible to disseminate concepts and values ​​around food. Food must be considered as a point of reference, a moment of aggregation and also an element of attraction".

“The message of food sustainability urgently needs to reach as many people as possible. We think the time has come to actually get busy, inside and outside our restaurants - has explained Mostaccio - to promote a more sustainable agri-food culture, processes to safeguard biodiversity, combat climate change and social inequalities. Today, more than ever, the awareness of good, clean and fair food must become a democratic issue open to all. For this reason we have decided to organize this event dedicated to all citizens. In particular, in a city like Messina, which enjoys an incredibly rich hinterland and which looks to the sea as a resource, talking about agroecology also means talking about the sustainability of fishing, traditional fishing and the valorisation of local fish".

“The mission of the MeSSInA Foundation – highlighted the general secretary of the MeSSInA Foundation Giacomo Pinaffo - is to design sustainable territorial development policies in the different communities in which it operates starting from the valorization of local knowledge, knowledge and traditions. And agri-food supply chains are often a fundamental asset. This is why we embrace the slow food policy of full sustainability of the food chain, because it is an important starting point for the local regeneration strategies that we are committed to supporting."

During the three days there will be many events and moments of participatory reflection.

Friday 17th, from 17.30 pm, at the Messina Chamber of Commerce, the protagonist of the debate will be the importance of food as key element to trigger change.

It will also be presented the See2Sea network, through which numerous Italian Chambers of Commerce will initiate cooperation aimed at developing good practices of sustainable tourism, territorial co-marketing and food policies that favor the creation of productive interconnections aimed at strengthening the local economy.

They will also be presented to the city slow itineraries in the province of Messina, which aim to promote a new travel model, made up of meetings and exchanges with farmers, cheesemakers, shepherds, butchers, bakers, winemakers who, together with the chefs who cook their products, they will be the narrators of their territories and special guides to discover local traditions.

And then there will be the awarding of the prize “Strait Between Two Seas”, established by the table from Messina Food Policy addressed to people, associations, cultural institutions or businesses who through projects, actions and good practices contribute to the ecological transition, working to reduce environmental impact with green economy and eco-innovation projects.

European Union Square, over the course of the three days, will instead transform into the beating heart of the event. Here, starting from Friday morning, a real one will be set up Sicilian Agroecology Market where the network of producers of Slow Food Presidia of the Ark of Taste and proximity will talk about their work of custodianship and protection of the territory. In the market it will be possible to purchase and taste short supply chain products, seasonal and made with respect for the environment and workers' rights, encouraging meetings between small-scale producers, who they are unable to access large-scale commercial channels.

The market will also be the place where they will take place food and wine events, taste workshops and thematic forums, where you can also taste wines from the Messina area as well as natural and biodynamic wines from Sicilian winemakers.

The program in detail:

Friday 17 November
COMMON MARKET
European Union Square
9.30 – Inauguration of the Agroecology Market
Meeting between producers and consumers

10.00 Hours - Opening of the Eat & Drink Area
Children's area: workshops with school groups
Participated Area: workshops with school groups

AGORA
European Union Square
10.00 – The market tells
Slow Food Coffee Coalition

12.00 – What the hell are you eating?
Happy hour, the aperitif is Slow

16.30 – The market tells
The custodians of biodiversity, including wheat, oil and fish

17.30 – What the hell are you eating?
At the table with Slow producers

19.00 – What the hell are you eating?
Happy hour, the aperitif is Slow

SLOW ITINERARIES
European Union Square
10.15 – Departure → Santa Lucia del Mela / Azienda Lipari
15.30 – Return → European Union Square

ROUND TABLES
Chamber of Commerce
17.00 – Objective 2030: Messina and its METamorphosis
Urban food policy, territorial co-marketing and sustainable development

Hours: 19.00 – “Stretto tra due Mari” Award
Messina resists: Let's reward the future we want

CONVIVIAL EVENING
Monte di Pietà Palace
The Rediscovered Cuisine
Food culture and street artists.
Organized by chefs from Messina and the chefs of the Slow Food Alliance.

Saturday November 18
COMMON MARKET
European Union Square
10.00 – Opening of the Eat & Drink Area
Children's Area: workshops with young people and families
Participate Area: workshops with young people and families

AGORA
European Union Square
10.00 – The market tells
Slow Food Coffee Coalition

12.00 – What the hell are you eating?
Happy hour, the aperitif is Slow

16.30 – The market tells
Stable meadows and animal welfare

17.30 – What the hell are you eating?
At the table with Slow producers

19.00 – What the hell are you eating?
Happy hour, the aperitif is Slow

SLOW ITINERARIES
Piazza Duomo
9.00 – Departure → Capo Peloro

14.30 – Return → European Union Square

FLAGS HALL
Town Hall
10.30 – Assembly of Slow Food Members
Sicily / Calabria pipelines

15.30 – National Assembly of Slow Food Italia APS Members
First legal protocol of the Association

INSTITUTIONAL DINNER
Chamber of Commerce
21.00 – Messina and its traditional cuisine
By Messina chefs

Sunday November 19
COMMON MARKET
European Union Square
10.00 – Opening of the Eat & Drink Area
Children's Area: workshops with young people and families
Participate Area: workshops with young people and families

AGORA
European Union Square
10.30 – The market tells
Expired or wasted?

12.00 – What the hell are you eating?
The aperitif of leftovers

15.00 –Event Closing
See you in 2024

FLAGS HALL
Town Hall
10.30 – National Assembly of Slow Food Italia APS Members.