Dear Slow Food Members:

Slow Food Oxon is proposing the first Fungi Foray on the 29^th Oct as follows: It is organised by the parks section of the Oxford Council—they had a UK authority on Fungi as the leader last year. We need to book the numbers urgently as it tends to fill quickly. They haven’t advertised it yet so it would be good to get in first. The cost is about £5 each, very reasonable. Please, let Ian Bird know NOW if you are available and interested.

To make up for a rather easy schedule of SF Oxon in September, here is an overview from our neighbouring Convivium Berkshire & Wiltshire. You are all very welcome.

CULINARY FRUIT TASTING a family Slow Food experience with local fruit expert Debbie Hearn & the Big Little Fruit Campaign apple pie & jam tart making followed by nursery style tea party 5pm on Thursday 14th September at Sheepdrove Organic Farm, Lambourn Tickets Adults £5 Children £2 slowfoodbw@hotmail.co.uk

LOCAL ORGANIC BEEF EVENT a Slow Food dining experience with local beef expert Bernard Harris of The Swan Inn farming butchering & cooking beef a unique sampling opportunity & organic beef dinner 8pm Wednesday 11th October at The Swan Inn, Inkpen Tickets £12 slowfoodbw@hotmail.co.uk

Ludlow Marches Food & Drink Festival
The 12th edition of this food festival takes place September 8-10 in Ludlow, England. As always, the event celebrates the quality and diversity of the superb independent food and drink producers and suppliers that abound in Ludlow and the Marches. Besides all the wonderful local products (including Presidium Three Counties Perry) visitors can sample and purchase from the market, there is a special Slow Food area inside the castle, as well as a number of Taste Workshops and other events.
For more information, visit foodfestival.co.uk.

Terra Madre Update

The Terra Madre Blog is live!
The Terra Madre Blog is a communication tool for everyone involved in Terra Madre – not just the food communities, cooks and academics that are the focus of Terra Madre 2006, but also Slow Food convivium leaders, Terra Madre coordinators, University of Gastronomic Sciences students, associations and NGOs that help us communicate with food communities and collaborate with Slow Food on projects and people all over the world who are part of the Terra Madre Network. The blog is a way to connect everyone within this Network and can also be read by those outside the immediate Terra Madre community.
This is the place to put all your questions, answers, photos, experiences, concerns – anything you wish to share with the rest of the Terra Madre Network. You can write any time you like and as much as you like.

We're here to help you if you have any questions about the blog; just send them to tmblog@slowfood.com. (If you are not a convivium leader and need your login information, please also write to us.)

Food Communities Affected by Middle East Conflict
Clashes between Lebanon and Israel these past two weeks have inevitably affected the people with whom we work.
The new Lebanese Kechek el fougara Cheese Presidium was scheduled to launch shortly, but due to the outburst of conflict, Christian and Muslim producers from the Earth&Co cooperative have had to evacuate the area, leaving their homes in the hands of the military and heading for safer areas in the north of the country.
On the other side of the border, in Israel, another Terra Madre community has been forced to abandon their village. A Katiusha rocket seriously damaged Samya Nasser's home; she is one of the coordinators for Sindyanna, an organization that joins Arab and Jewish oil producers from Galilee. Following increased bombardments, the Sindyanna coordinators have decided to close their workshop and proceed with activities in safer areas.
Both Lebanese producers of Kechek el fougara and the Galilee community of oil producers are expected at Terra Madre in October, but the precarious situation of these past weeks renders their participation uncertain.
We therefore renew out support for both communities affected by the continuing conflict in the Middle East and we hope that they will soon be able to resume their everyday lives.

- Visit the Foundation website for more information and news about Slow Food's Ark and Presidia projects.

UNISG News

Applications are currently being accepted for the Master in Gastronomic Sciences and Quality Products, a one-year graduate program taught primarily in Italian that begins March 2007. The Master provides students with in-depth knowledge of foods and their gastronomic and sensory values, covering production, marketing, tasting and communication of products, and includes a series of stages around Italy and Europe.
In Pollenzo UNISG is completing its selection process for the three-year undergraduate degree in Gastronomic Sciences starting in the academic year 2006/2007. Hundreds of applications were received from all over the world, including from as far afield as the Philippines, Nepal, Gambia and Venezuela. Admitted students hail from Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Morocco, Ireland, Germany and Turkey, among others.
Meanwhile the current Master in Food Culture students are about to start their six-week internships at various companies and organizations in the food and wine sector, while the current degree course students will spend two weeks of September on stage in Veneto, Puglia, Portugal, Ireland, Australia, Japan, India or California.

Regards,

Tamara Schiopu