Slow Food Nations Adds Family-focused Programming And Free Talks Around "Food For Change" To Denver Culinary Festival

News provided by

VISIT DENVER, The Convention & Visitors Bureau

Jun 08, 2018, 11:00 ET

NEW YORK and DENVER, June 8, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Slow Food USA continues to expand the schedule of events for the second annual Slow Food Nations, a three-day culinary festival taking place on July 13-15 in Denver, Colorado, with the launch of a series of free talks and family-focused events throughout the weekend. A complete schedule of free and ticketed events is now available at slowfoodnations.org. Slow Food Nations 2018 is presented by Danone North America, Larimer Square and VISIT DENVER, with additional supporting partners.

Located in Denver's Larimer Square, the food festival will offer more than 50 different food tastings, dinners, workshops and family-activities all centered around sustainability and locally-sourced foods. The mission of Slow Food is to inspire individuals and communities to change the world through food that is good, clean, and fair – and to show them how much fun it can be in the process.

As part of Slow Food's global "Food for Change" theme in 2018, Slow Food Nations will host a "Food for Change" tent with free talks on Saturday, July 14th and Sunday, July 15th. The theme centers on how food is a delicious solution to climate change, and how our individual actions impact the world around us. The goal is to trigger change in each one of us, in our everyday lives, from the choice of what food we buy, to what we cultivate and how we prepare our own meals. Slow Food believes that food is the most powerful tool to achieve a slow, peaceful and global revolution.

There will be eight free talks in this space, including:

The Impact of Capitalism on Food: This "people's think tank" will give you a new lens for viewing capitalism, cheap food, hunger, and the position of Slow Food in the change movement. With Raj Patel, Gail Myers and moderated by Tom Philpott.
Food Waste 101: With 40% of the food we produce in the U.S. wasted, this talk will cover why food waste is an important issue, where it comes from and how we can take action.
A Table for #MeToo: Hosted by Mother Jones, this talk will examine the power and gender dynamics in the kitchen and in the fields.
Seed Saving to Save the World: Hear from experts on why seed saving is a critical part of the struggle to preserve and protect our local and regional food systems and how to be a part of the process.
Becoming Conscious Carnivores: Kate Cox, editor of The New Food Economy, joins cookbook author and food journalist Lynne Curry in a conversation that explores the ethical, philosophical, and environmental conundrums of being a 21st century omnivore.

View all free talks here.

The Family Pavilion will be also be open on Saturday and Sunday with activities for children, including a series of scheduled workshops, as well as ongoing art projects and hands-on activities to learn about food. Some of the featured activities will include pizza making, a Tattered Covered bookstore story hour, gyotaku (traditional Japanese fish printing), and pollinator seed bombs. Ongoing activities invite kids to create bean and handprint art, get their faces painted, dress up as farmers, and view a demonstration beehive.

In addition, the Taste Marketplace, a free open-air tasting pavilion and market, will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 14th and 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. on Sunday, July 15. Here, nearly 75 good, clean and fair food companies and farmers will be offering tastes and showcasing their products for visitors to try. Amano Artisan Chocolate, Backyard Soda Co., Burn Fermented Hot Sauce, Farmer's Porch Heirloom Pumpkin Seeds, Gourmet Foods International, La Bonne Vie Cheese, and Perky Jerky will be some of the exhibitors showcasing their products here.

Beyond these free events, there are several dozen hands-on ticketed workshops and discussions with culinary luminaries and environmental thought-leaders, including Rick Bayless, Massimo Bottura, Deb Eschmeyer, Daniela Ibarra-Howell, John Ikerd, Raj Patel, Steven Satterfield, Alon Shaya, Woody Tasch, Poppy Tooker, as well as Colorado local chefs Daniel Asher, Jennifer Jasinski, Sheila Lucero, Paul Reilly, Alex Seidel, Chris Starkus and Kelly Whitaker. These events start at $40 per ticket. Each night features a ticketed dinner tasting event.

For the complete schedule of events and to find more, visit slowfoodnations.org. Visit slowfoodnation s .org/media to access images of the event. Media pass applications are available now until June 15. Apply here.

About Slow Food:
Slow Food is a global grassroots organization that envisions a world in which all people can access and enjoy food that is good for them, good for those who grow it and good for the planet. Slow Food involves over a million activists, chefs, experts, youth, farmers, fishers and academics in over 160 countries. Among them, a network of around 100,000 Slow Food members are linked to 1,500 local chapters worldwide, including over 150 chapters across the United States. As part of the network, more than 2,400 Terra Madre food communities practice small-scale and sustainable production of quality food around the world.

Slow Food Media Contacts:
Lori Lefevre Wells
[email protected] or 914.630.0961
Anna Mulé
[email protected] or 718/260-8000 x152

About VISIT DENVER, The Convention & Visitors Bureau:
Celebrating 109 years of promoting The Mile High City, VISIT DENVER is a nonprofit trade association that contracts with the City of Denver to market Denver as a convention and leisure destination, increasing economic development in the city, creating jobs and generating taxes. A record 17.3 million visitors stayed overnight in Denver in 2016, generating $5.3 billion in spending, while supporting nearly 57,000 jobs, making Tourism one of the largest industries in Denver. Learn more about Denver on the VISITDENVER website and at TOURISMPAYSDENVER or by phone at 800 2 Denver. Denver International Airport (DEN; flydenver.com) connects The Mile High City to more than 190 destinations worldwide including nonstop service to 26 international destinations in 11 countries. Follow Denver's social media channels for up-to-the-minute updates at: Facebook.com/visitdenver; Twitter.com/visitdenver; Instagram.com/visitdenver; and YouTube.com/visitdenver.