3 November 2014 - The Philippines participated in the weeklong celebration of International Salone del Gusto held in Lingotto Fiere, in Turin, Italy from October 23 to 27. Department of Agriculture Undersecretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat headed the Philippine delegation.

Consul General Marichu Mauro of the Philippine Consulate in Milan and Charge d’Affaires (CDA), a.i. Leila Lora-Santos of the Philippine Embassy in Rome visited the fair to show support and provide assistance to the Philippine delegation.

The Department of Agriculture invited international awardee Master Chef Margarita Fores and her team of chefs who prepared Filipino cuisine using traditional products such as rice from the Cordillera Region and other exotic Philippine food. The products are culturally or historically linked to the region, locality, ethnicity or traditional production practice and used in the culinary expertise of Master Chef Margarita Fores and her team.

The event was organized by Slow Food, the region of Piedmont and the city of Turin in collaboration with the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies. The international Salone del Gusto, dedicated to the world of food, is in its 10th edition this year. This year, Salone del Gusto is once more united into a single event with the international meeting of Terra Madre and the network of small-scale producers from around the world as was done in 2012. There were 1000 exhibitors from 130 countries.

Slow Food was founded by Carlo Petrini and a group of activists in the 1980s with the initial aim to defend regional traditions, good food, gastronomic pleasure and a slow pace of life. In over two decades of history, the slow food movement and philosophy continues to promote a comprehensive approach to food recognizing the strong connections between plate, planet, people, politics and culture. It now represents a global movement involving thousands of projects and millions of people in over 160 countries.  END